Department for Transport

Department for Transport: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation. There are currently 23 EU Directives relating to my Department’s responsibilities awaiting transposition into UK law.

London City Airport: Pollution

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to monitor the environmental effect of flights going to and from London City Airport; and if he will make a statement.

Mr John Hayes: Under the Environmental Noise (England) Regulations 2006 (SI. 2006 No. 2238), airports such as London City are required to produce noise action plans at least every five years. This requires an assessment of noise impacts around airports and for the airport to identify suitable measures to address noise problems. The Secretary of State is responsible for approving noise action plans. London City Airport also funds the employment of an Airport Monitoring Officer at the London Borough of Newham. This role includes ensuring that the airport complies with requirements placed upon them, including those related to the environment – such as not operating flights at night.

London City Airport

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what restrictions are in place controlling flights going to and from London City Airport; and if he will make a statement.

Mr John Hayes: London City Airport’s operational hours are limited to minimise the impact on local residents. The airport is permitted to operate flights between the following hours:06.30 and 22.30 hours on weekdays06.30 and 13.00 hours on Saturdays12.30 and 22.30 on Sundays09.00 and 22.30 hours on Public or Bank HolidaysFull closure on 25 December The final 30 minutes of operation is solely for flights scheduled earlier which have been unavoidably delayed. The total number of aircraft movements (take off and landings) is limited to 120,000 per annum.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Schools: Non-domestic Rates

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what comparative assessment he has made of the effect of the increase in business rates on (a) state and (b) privately funded schools with roof-top solar photovoltaic panels.

Mr Marcus Jones: Business rates are based on valuations from the Valuation Office Agency and we do not intervene in their independent assessments. We have proposed a £3.4 billion transitional relief scheme to ensure that no ratepayer is unfairly penalised by the 2017 revaluation.

Non-domestic Rates

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the amount of business rate income generated in each local authority area in England for each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department has published non-domestic rating income from the rates retention scheme for 2013-14 and 2014-15 and forecast non-domestic rating income from the rates retention scheme for 2015-16 and 2016-17 for each local authority at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-non-domestic-rates-collected-by-councilsData relating to non-domestic rating income collected by local authorities prior to the rates retention scheme can also be found at the same link.The national non-domestic rates collected by councils for 2015-16 (final outturn) will be published on the 23 November 2016.

Local Enterprise Partnerships

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will publish a review of the effectiveness of Local Economic Partnerships; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Percy: The effectiveness of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) is assessed by this Department and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on an on-going basis. My Department does not publish information on internal conversations or assessment of LEPs. We are currently assessing LEPs' proposals for a further round of Growth Deals, which includes an assessment of their growth strategy, the strength of their governance and partnerships and their record of delivery. We intend to announce Growth Deals later this year.

Business Improvement Districts: Loans

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what loans have been issued for what purposes to Business Improvement Districts in each (a) region of the UK and (b) local authority area in each of the last two years; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Percy: The Government is committed to Business Improvement Districts and the impact they have on their local areas.We are keen to see the setting up of more Business Improvement Districts and we recognise that their development requires up front expenditure. In October 2013 we launched a £500,000 recyclable loan fund and have supported 20 areas with loans totalling £658,555. In the last two years the following loans have been issued to areas requesting support in setting up a Business Improvement District: AreaAmountRegionLocal AuthorityCheltenham£35,000South WestCheltenham Borough CouncilEastbourne£41,000South EastEastbourne Borough CouncilHastings£31,400South EastHastings Borough CouncilHexham£40,000North EastNorthumberland County CouncilLeicester£50,000East MidlandsLeicester City CuncilLichfield£20,000West MidlandsLichfield District CouncilMilton Keynes£35,000South EastMilton Keynes CouncilOxted£30,000South EastTandridge District CouncilPoole£42,000South WestPoole Borough CouncilPurley£10,000Greater LondonLondon Borough of CroydonRuncorn£27,000North WestHalton Borough CouncilWatford£49,822East of EnglandHertfordshire Borough CouncilYork£30,000Yorkshire and HumberYork City Council

Social Services

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has (a) made and (b) received from outside sources of the increase in demand for social care services from local councils over the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones: I recognise that demand for social care is growing and this was a consideration in last year's Spending Review.The Spending Review settlement provides up to £3.5 billion of new support for adult social care by 2019/20 - greater than the £2.9 billion that the Local Government Association estimated was needed for adult social care in their Spending Review submission. The vast majority of councils have already taken advantage of the opportunity to introduce a new Social Care Precept, which allows them in increase council tax by 2% above the existing threshold. By the end of the Parliament, this will raise up to £2 billion that must be spent exclusively on adult social care. In addition, by 2019/20 an extra £1.5 billion per year will be available for inclusion in the Better Care Fund.Taken together, the Social Care Precept and the Better Care Fund will mean local government has access to the funding needed to increase social care spending in real terms by the end of the Parliament.

Council Tax: Referendums

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many local authorities in England have held council tax referendums in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones: The only council tax referendum to date was held by the Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner. A proposed 15.8% increase in the Commissioner's precept was rejected by a margin of 70% to 30% in May 2015.

Enterprise Zones

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many enterprise zones there are in each (a) region and (b) local authority area in England; how long each zone has been in existence; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Percy: There are currently 36 Enterprise Zones in England. The attached table provides a breakdown by region, local authority area and when each Enterprise Zone was established.



table
(Word Document, 26.01 KB)

Local Government Finance

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he expects to publish the Local Government Settlement; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government published an historic four year local government finance settlement on 8 February 2016 which was debated by Members of the House on 10 February. We published a technical consultation which confirmed the approach for 2017-18 on 15 September. Councils across England applied for the four year offer by 14 October and the Government will respond as soon as practicable. We intend to publish in the normal way a statutory provisional settlement for 2017-18 that honours the Government’s commitment to the four year offer later this year.

Business Improvement Districts

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he expects to publish a response to the consultation his Department launched in March 2015 on the future of Business Improvement Districts; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Percy: The Government is committed to Business Improvement Districts, the role they play and the positive impact they are making in local communities across the country. We are considering the responses we received to the Consultation and will publish a response in due course.

Communities and Local Government: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Prime Minister has been clear we will not give a running commentary on Brexit negotiations.

Local Government Finance

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to devolve further fiscal powers to local authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Percy: Devolution Deals have awarded Mayoral Combined Authorities with greater flexibilities over investment funding through the Single Pot. Some have also committed to pilots for the retention of growth in business rates above a base and further, to pilot the 100% retention system that will be in operation nationally by the end of this parliament. These policies fundamentally change the way local government operates, through the localisation of business rates to fund local government functions.We continue to welcome Devolution Deal proposals from all areas of the country and have been clear that the most ambitious deals will require ambitious governance reform.

Regional Planning and Development: North of England

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, who has responsibility for delivering the Northern Powerhouse.

Andrew Percy: The Northern Powerhouse is a partnership between local civic and business leaders and the whole of government; all departments, therefore, have a responsibility to support its delivery. The Prime Minister appointed me as Minister for the Northern Powerhouse to help ensure the whole machinery of government gets behind the Northern Powerhouse as part of our efforts to build an economy that works for everyone, not just the privileged few.

Non-domestic Rates

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many responses his Department has received to the consultation on local government retention of business rates.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Government’s recent consultation on Business Rates Retention received 454 responses from a range of local authorities, those with business interests and other organisations. The Government will publish its response to the outcome of this consultation in due course.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Staff

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans he has to base staff of his Department working on industrial strategy in offices outside London.

Mr Nick Hurd: Holding answer received on 05 September 2016



The Department announced its decision earlier this year to create a combined headquarters and policy function in London, to deliver a simpler, smaller department that is more flexible and responsive to stakeholders and businesses by 2020. This involves basing all policy roles in London by 2018, which will include those roles working on Industrial Strategy issues.

British Steel: Pensions

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of support for the British Steel Pension Scheme in securing the future of the UK steel industry; and what steps he is taking to support that scheme.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Government is committed to achieving a sustainable long term future for the UK steel industry and has and is taking a wide range of action, working with the industry, to help achieve this goal. The British Steel Pension Scheme is a private pension scheme. Therefore, decisions on the future of this are a matter for the Trustees and the Company.

Coal

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 45332, whether his Department plans to review the use of coal in the UK energy market; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: Most of the UK’s existing coal fired power stations are old, relatively inefficient and require investment to reduce the level of damaging pollutants they emit. I expect to consult shortly on the closure of unabated coal stations.

Coal Fired Power Stations

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what proportion of UK energy supply he plans to be produced by UK coal-fired power stations in each of the next 10 years.

Jesse Norman: Most of the UK’s existing coal fired power stations are old, relatively inefficient and require investment to reduce the level of damaging pollutants they emit. I expect to consult shortly on the closure of unabated coal stations.

Hinkley Point C Power Station

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 46335, and with reference to the Secretary of State Investor Agreement and Contract for Difference for Hinkley Point C signed by the Government on 29 September 2016, why he did not seek parliamentary approval for the liabilities incurred.

Jesse Norman: The Department laid a minute on 21 October 2015 outlining the liabilities that would be incurred by entering in to the contracts for Hinkley Point C. The minute can be found at:http://qna.files.parliament.uk/qna-attachments/425357%5Coriginal%5C20151021%20Minute%20to%20Parliament%20HPC%20contingent%20liabilities.docx

Business Premises: Energy

Mr Mark Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate his Department has made of the number of commercial landlords exempt from Energy Efficiency Regulations because of provisions against upfront costs.

Jesse Norman: Under the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property)(England and Wales) Regulations 2015, landlords of privately rented commercial property will need to ensure that, from 1 April 2018, their properties reach an energy performance rating of at least an ‘E’ before granting a tenancy to new or existing tenants. Landlords of commercial property are not exempt from having to meet the upfront costs of installing measures to improve performance; instead the regulations provide a cost effectiveness test, and landlords are required to install all recommended energy efficiency improvements which meet, or exceed, a seven year simple payback.

Power Failures: Australia

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has had any meetings or correspondence with his Australian counterpart on recent power cuts in Southern Australia in order to learn any appropriate lessons for the UK energy market.

Jesse Norman: My rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State has had no meetings on the recent power cuts in Southern Australia but we are aware of the problems experienced in Southern Australia following the damage to the grid in severe gales.

Emergency Services: Vehicles

Gerald Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will regulate the sale of ex-emergency service vehicles.

Margot James: The Government does not regulate the sale of decommissioned emergency fire and rescue vehicles. It is for each emergency rescue authority to dispose appropriately of its assets as it sees fit.

Coal Fired Power Stations

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when his Department plans to publish the consultation on the Government's commitment to phase out coal-fired power stations.

Jesse Norman: Most of the UK’s existing coal fired power stations are old, relatively inefficient and require investment to reduce the level of damaging pollutants they emit. We expect to consult shortly on the closure of unabated coal stations.

Energy: Meters

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate his Department has made of the number of households in (a) Feltham and Heston constituency, (b) all London boroughs and (c) the UK that are equipped with intelligent smart metering systems.

Jesse Norman: Data on the number of smart electricity and gas meters installed in Great Britain is set out in the Government’s ‘Smart Meters, Quarterly Report to end June 2016’, published on 29 September 2016:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/statistical-release-and-data-smart-meters-great-britain-quarter-2-2016Across Great Britain, more than 4.2 million meters are now operating under the Programme. Northern Ireland is undertaking a separate roll-out programme.Data is not collected from energy suppliers in a format that allows constituency or London-borough level data to be produced.

Electricity: Meters

Dr Paul Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many households in the Highland area of Scotland with dynamically teleswitched meters receive their electricity supply from Scottish Power.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy does not hold estimates on the number of households in the Highland area of Scotland with dynamically teleswitched meters who receive their electricity supply under Scottish Power’s Comfort Control tariff.In Ofgem’s response to CMA Notice of Remedies published in August 2015, it was estimated that there were 160,000 households across Great Britain with dynamically teleswitched meters in operation at the end of 2014:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/561e1fbaed915d39bc000013/Ofgem__revised_with_additional_material_.pdf

Electricity: Meters

Dr Paul Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many households in the Highland area of Scotland with dynamically teleswitched meters receive their electricity supply under Scottish Power's Comfort Control tariff.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy does not hold estimates on the number of households in the Highland area of Scotland with dynamically teleswitched meters who receive their electricity supply under Scottish Power’s Comfort Control tariff.In Ofgem’s response to CMA Notice of Remedies published in August 2015, it was estimated that there were 160,000 households across Great Britain with dynamically teleswitched meters in operation at the end of 2014:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/561e1fbaed915d39bc000013/Ofgem__revised_with_additional_material_.pdf

Electricity: Meters

Dr Paul Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many households in the UK have their electricity supplies controlled by dynamically teleswitched meters.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy does not hold estimates on the number of households in the UK who have their electricity supplies controlled by dynamically teleswitched meters.In Ofgem’s response to CMA Notice of Remedies published in August 2015, it was estimated that there were 160,000 households across Great Britain with dynamically teleswitched meters in operation at the end of 2014:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/561e1fbaed915d39bc000013/Ofgem__revised_with_additional_material_.pdf

British Petroleum: North Sea

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the environmental impact of the oil spill in the North Sea from the BP Clair platform in early October 2016; what steps his Department has taken to ensure the effects of that incident are minimised; and whether he plans to seek a penalty from BP for any damage that results from that incident.

Jesse Norman: BP estimates that approximately 95 tonnes of oil was released from the Clair installation. Extensive aerial surveillance was undertaken by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and by BP, and oil spill modelling indicated that all the oil would have dispersed within 5-10 days. All the oil has now dispersed from the sea surface. Marine Scotland advised that they did not consider that the spill would have any significant environmental impacts. Samples of seawater were also collected by Marine Scotland and these are currently being tested. Departmental officials visited the installation immediately after the incident and are now involved in carrying out a thorough investigation, not only to determine the cause of the incident, but to learn the lessons from it and further actions to be taken. The investigation is focussed on all aspects of the incident including any underlying factors which may have contributed.

Civil Nuclear Constabulary: Retirement

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2016 to Question 44858, if he will meet the hon. Member for Copeland and representatives of the Civil Nuclear Police Federation before Christmas 2016 to discuss the Civil Nuclear Constabulary Police Officers' retirement age.

Jesse Norman: The Minister responsible for matters relating to the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, my noble Friend the Minister of State for Energy and Intellectual Property, is meeting with the hon. Member on 19 October, and will be meeting with the Civil Nuclear Police Federation on 3 November.

Energy: Prices

Callum McCaig: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with the CEOs of the Big Six energy companies on the availability of the cheapest energy tariff for existing customers.

Jesse Norman: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Ministers will be meeting with a number of energy supply companies in due course to discuss a wide range of issues. Government’s focus remains firmly on getting the best deal for consumers and ensuring the market works for everyone.

Broadband: Rural Areas

Dr Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent meetings he has had with Ministers of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on rural superfast broadband.

Jesse Norman: High quality broadband connectivity across the country is vital for maintaining the UK’s place at the forefront of the digital revolution and connecting people to opportunity and prosperity; in light of this, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has regular discussions with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on the important issue of broadband for everybody in an economy that works for all, and particularly those in rural locations.In addition, the joint BEIS/DCMS Review of Business Broadband will continue to consider how consumers and businesses in rural locations can benefit from future private and public digital infrastructure initiatives.

Solar Power: Staff

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many people were employed in the solar energy sector in (a) Barnsley East constituency, (b) Barnsley, (c) Yorkshire and the Humber, (d) England and (e) the UK in the latest period for which figures are available.

Jesse Norman: In 2014, 9,500 FTE employees were estimated to have been directly employed in the solar photovoltaic sector in the UK, including 9,000 in England. BEIS does not hold data that is broken down by region, and data for the solar thermal sector is not available.Further detail can be viewed online through the UK Environmental Accounts: UK Solar Photovoltaic Sector 2014, (part of Low carbon and renewable energy economy, final estimates: 2014) at:https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/environmentalaccounts/articles/ukenvironmentalaccountsuksolarphotovoltaicsector2014/uksolarphotovoltaicsector2014https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/environmentalaccounts/datasets/lcreestimatesdataset.

Coal Fired Power Stations

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the cost to the public purse was of bringing on stream reserve coal-fired power stations to meet demand on 13 September 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: There was no cost to the public purse. The market brought forward the required level of supply to meet demand on 13 September 2016 in the normal way, and no reserve was called upon.

Hinkley Point C Power Station

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when his Department plans to make a decision on the timetable for the construction of Hinkley Point C.

Jesse Norman: The construction timetable of the Hinkley Point C power plant is a matter for the developer. The Contract for Difference includes a target commissioning date of 01/05/2025 for reactor 1 and 01/11/2025 for reactor 2.

Post Offices

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which post offices in each constituency have moved to premises shared with private sector organisations; and which organisations each such post office is sharing with.

Margot James: The provision and location of post offices is the operational responsibility of Post Office Limited. I have asked Paula Vennells, the Chief Executive of Post Office Limited, to write to the Hon Member on this matter. A copy of her reply will be placed in the libraries of the House.

Post Offices

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which post offices in each constituency have moved from ground floor to first floor premises in the last two years.

Margot James: The provision and location of post offices is the operational responsibility of Post Office Limited. I have asked Paula Vennells, the Chief Executive of Post Office Limited, to write to the Hon Member on this matter. A copy of her reply will be placed in the libraries of the House.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether public consultations or surveys were undertaken in the former Department for Energy and Climate Change to ascertain whether people trusted and understood the data-sharing element of the Warm Home Discount Scheme in the run-up to implementing that scheme.

Jesse Norman: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Iron and Steel: South Wales

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the economic effect of the UK leaving the EU on the steel industry in South Wales.

Mr Nick Hurd: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: Until the UK leaves the EU the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation. The Foreign and Commonwealth Ofiice currently has one directive yet to be transposed directly into law: Council Directive (EU) 2015/637 on the coordination and cooperation measures to facilitate consular protection for unrepresented citizens of the Union in third countries and repealing Decision 95/533/EC. Transposition date for this directive is 1 May 2018.

British Nationals Abroad: Administration of Justice

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his policy differs between countries on his Department's intervention in the judicial and legal affairs in cases abroad involving British nationals.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​Consular staff of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office tailor the support that they provide to British nationals based on their individual needs and the local conditions. Under certain circumstances this might include intervening on behalf of British nationals to try and ensure that they receive fair treatment. This could involve for example contacting the relevant local authorities to express an interest in a case or ask about progress. They cannot however interfere in another country's judicial processes on behalf of British nationals. We must respect other countries' systems, just as we expect them to respect the UK's laws and legal processes. This applies in all countries.

Saudi Arabia: Human Rights

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when the Government last held discussions with the Saudi government in which specific reference was made to human rights in Saudi Arabia.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We do not shy away from raising legitimate human rights concerns. The Foreign Secretary most recently raised human rights with the Saudi Arabian authorities on 7 September. Our Embassy in Riyadh also frequently raise our concerns and will continue to do so.

Northern Ireland Office

Northern Ireland Office: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

Kris Hopkins: Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation. There are no EU directives related to the Department’s responsibilities awaiting transposition into UK law.

UK Withdrawal from EU: Northern Ireland

Dr Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent meetings he has had with Ministers of the Northern Ireland Executive on the UK's exit from the EU.

James Brokenshire: The Government is committed to working closely with the Northern Ireland Executive as we prepare for negotiations, recognising the particular circumstances that affect Northern Ireland. I have had regular meetings with Ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive. In her first two weeks as Prime Minister, Theresa May visited Northern Ireland, promising the UK Government would fully engage the devolved administrations to ensure we achieve a shared understanding of their interests and objectives as we prepare to exit the European Union. The Government looks forward to discussing arrangements to prepare for exit with all three devolved administrations at the forthcoming Joint Ministerial Committee plenary meeting on 24 October. In addition, the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union has visited Northern Ireland, engaging with the Northern Ireland Executive and key representatives for sectoral businesses and civil society, ensuring we build a national consensus to our approach to the negotiations. Ministers from the Department for International Trade and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy have also engaged with politicians, businesses and civil society from Northern Ireland, recognising the particular circumstances that affect it, including around the border with the Republic of Ireland. The UK Government’s focus remains on making a success of exiting the European Union and getting the right deal both for the UK as a whole and for Northern Ireland.

Political Parties: Northern Ireland

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent progress he has made on agreeing a timetable with political parties in Northern Ireland for full transparency of donations to such parties; and if he will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: The Government remains committed to introducing greater transparency in the regulation of donations and loans to Northern Ireland political parties and it is my intention to consult the Northern Ireland parties on this matter.

Electoral Register: Northern Ireland

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what estimate he has made of the potential cost to the public purse of introducing online voter registration in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what equality impact assessment his Department has undertaken on the measures that will be contained in the Representation of the People (Electronic Communications and Amendment) (NI) Regulations 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Kris Hopkins: The current estimate of the costs to extend digital registration to Northern Ireland is approximately £250,000. These are one-off costs and will not occur annually. The option of digital registration will be made available in addition to the existing paper registration system. A section 75 screening has been carried out in relation to the provisions contained within the draft Representation of the People (Electronic Communications and Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2016. The screening found no adverse impact on equality of opportunity or good relations for those within the section 75 groups.

Department for Exiting the European Union

EU Law

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of adding a five years sunset clause to the proposed Great Repeal Bill governing the expiry of EU legislation which has entered the statute book.

Mr David Jones: The Government has committed to introducing a Bill in the next parliamentary session which will repeal the European Communities Act 1972. The principle of the Bill is about creating legal certainty for the UK on exit day and we will set out its content in due course.

Department for International Development

Greece: Migrant Camps

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in refugee camps in Greece.

Rory Stewart: In collaboration with the Greek Government, the Department for International Development (DFID) closely monitors conditions for refugees and migrants in camps in Greece. Officials from DFID make frequent visits to camps and a humanitarian adviser has been deployed in Athens. I travelled to Greece in September, where I visited camps and met with migrants and those involved in addressing the humanitarian situation.The UK has responded generously to the Mediterranean humanitarian crisis, contributing more than £34 million to the response in Greece. This support has provided life-saving assistance refugees and migrants including the provision of food, water, hygiene kits and infant packs, and psychosocial care.

Migrant Camps: Overseas Aid

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will list the refugee camps which are currently receiving aid from her Department.

Rory Stewart: DFID supports refugee camps in many different countries as part of our wider programming to assist those displaced by conflict, persecution and fear. It is not possible to list each individual camp.

Developing Countries: EU External Trade

Dr Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent meetings she has had with (a) Ministers and (b) officials of the Department for International Trade on the effect on developing countries of EU food tariffs.

Rory Stewart: The Secretary of State meets with her Ministerial colleagues regularly to discuss a variety of issues relating to trade and development. DFID officials are working closely with the Department for International Trade and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the impact of EU tariffs and non-tariff measures on developing country exports.

Developing Countries: Education

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the report by UNESCO, entitled Global Education Monitoring Report 2016; and what steps at (a) bilateral and (b) multilateral level her Department plans to take as a result of that report.

Priti Patel: The 2016 Global Education Monitoring Report highlights the UK’s global leadership on education, identifying that we provided 17% of total education aid to the poorest countries between 2012 and 2014. We will work bilaterally, and through our multilateral partners, to help 11 million children in the poorest countries gain a decent education by 2020. We continue to focus on educating children in emergencies; supporting the Education Cannot Wait fund which we were integral to setting up.

Haiti: Hurricanes and Tornadoes

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department has taken to ensure that the humanitarian response in Haiti reflects the needs of older people affected by Hurricane Matthew.

Rory Stewart: The UK is committing up to £8 million of initial support to help thousands of people in Haiti affected by Hurricane Matthew.In Haiti the UK is working closely with other international donors, the United Nations, NGOs and the Government of Haiti to establish the extent of the damage and the most pressing humanitarian needs following Hurricane Matthew. Our response is targeted to those most in need, taking account of vulnerable groups including older people. DFID is getting aid to where it is needed most, and relief items from the UK are being distributed in the worst affected areas of Haiti.

Italy: Migrant Camps

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in the refugee camps in Italy.

Rory Stewart: The Department for International Development, and other UK Government departments, closely monitor conditions for refugees and migrants arriving in Italy, as well as the humanitarian situation there more broadly.The UK has responded generously to the Mediterranean humanitarian crisis, contributing up to £1.5 million in humanitarian assistance to partners working in Italy. Through the Red Cross, UK aid has reached more than 85,000 refugees and migrants arriving in Italy with food assistance.

Balkans: Migrant Camps

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in the refugee camps in Serbia and Montenegro.

Rory Stewart: The Department for International Development, and other UK Government departments, continue to closely monitor conditions for refugees and migrants in official Government-run centres and unofficial camps in Serbia, as well as the humanitarian situation in the Balkans more broadly.The UK has responded generously to the refugee and migrant crisis, contributing up to £18 million in humanitarian assistance in the Balkans through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), the Red Cross, International Organisation for Migration (IOM), as well as the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (CPM). This support has provided life-saving aid to migrants and refugees including food, essential relief items, temporary shelter and psychosocial care.

Jordan

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in Jordan.

Rory Stewart: The UK is working with the Government of Jordan to provide help to the 656,400 Syrian refugees registered in Jordan, the Jordanian host communities they live in, and address the specific needs of those on the border. But humanitarian assistance on its own is not enough and the UK with the international community and the Government of Jordan have agreed a ‘Jordan Compact’ to create new livelihoods and job opportunities for Syrians and Jordanians and ensure all children, including refugees, are in education in the 2016/17 school year. The international community will provide significant financial support and put in place policy changes on trade access to support this process.

Lebanon

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in Lebanon.

Rory Stewart: Lebanon hosts proportionally more refugees than any other country. 1.03 million Syrian refugees are officially registered with the United Nations Refugee Agency in Lebanon with up to 500,000 more unregistered, according to the joint Government of Lebanon-UN Lebanon Crisis Response Plan. In addition, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) estimates that between 260,000 and 280,000 of the 450,000 registered Palestinian refugees from Lebanon continue to depend on UNRWA’s work and that approximately 30,000 Palestinian refugees from Syria now live in Lebanon.The humanitarian situation in Lebanon is deteriorating. Preliminary results of the United Nation’s 2016 vulnerability assessment survey show that 70.5% Syrian refugees live below the poverty line and 93% are food insecure. In 2015, debt levels were high at an average of $857 per household and across the country Syrian refugees reside in substandard accommodation with poor access to basic services. A 2015 survey by UNRWA and the American University of Beirut found that 90% of Palestinian refugees from Syria, and 65% of Palestinian refugees who lived in Lebanon before the Syrian war, lived below the poverty line.Since 2012, the Department for International Development has allocated £340 million in humanitarian and development funding in Lebanon to support Syrian refugees, Palestinian refugees and vulnerable Lebanese.

Developing Countries: Renewable Energy

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much her Department spent on securing renewable energy in developing countries in each year since 2009.

James Wharton: Estimated bilateral spend each year since 2010 on programmes that help develop renewable energy was: YearNet ODA (£)2010/11421,1852011/125,753,3692012/1318,286,3092013/1438,969,1722014/15116,904,5032015/1672,134,609Total252,469,1487 This does not capture relevant spend through multilateral funds, including the UK’s contributions to Multilateral Development Banks and climate specific funds such as the Climate Investment Funds, where there are significant renewable energy components.

Africa: Renewable Energy

Kirsten  Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 13 September 2016 to Question 46228, what (a) targets and (b) mechanisms are in place to ensure that funding allocated to the Energy Africa campaign has reached the number of beneficiaries for which that campaign is intended.

James Wharton: Energy Africa is a UK Government campaign aimed at stimulating African markets in household solar systems so that people currently without modern energy can get access to electricity. To achieve this, DFID aims to develop Energy Africa Compacts with up to 14 African countries (Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe) to address the policy and regulatory barriers inhibiting solar market expansion.Energy Africa compact implementation will be supported by new and existing DFID energy access programmes, each with their own funding streams and bespoke monitoring mechanisms. We anticipate these DFID programmes will support the off-grid sector to provide energy access to at least 4.7 million people. Implementation of Energy Africa Compacts will also be complemented by funding, support and expertise from other donors and partners.

Department for Education

Banbury Academy

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the efficacy of the outsourcing by Banbury Academy of admissions appeals to a private contractor; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Timpson: Any admission authority can outsource its appeals to a contractor; however, the admission authority remains responsible for ensuring appeals are conducted in accordance with the School Admission Appeals Code. It is not the Department’s role to provide an assessment on the efficacy of the outsourcing of admissions appeals to a private contractor, however where EFA has concerns about financial management or the governance in an academy trust, we will use our intervention powers accordingly.

Schools: Admissions

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children secured a place at their first choice school in (a) Woking constituency, (b) Surrey, (c) the South East and (d) the UK in the latest period for which data is available.

Edward Timpson: The Department collects data from local authorities in England on how many parents received an offer of a place for their children at one of their preferred secondary or primary schools based on the respective national offer days.The most recent data relate to the start of the 2016/17 academic year. Figures on the number of children who secured a place at their first choice school for the local authority of Surrey, the region of the South East and for England, are outlined below.Figures for the UK are not available as Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland run their own separate school application and offer processes. Number of applications and first choice offers for entry into primary and secondary school for academic year 2016/17 SurreySouth EastEnglandNumber of applications for a primary school place 13,859104,635641,572Of which: number offered their first choice11,39490,790566,836Percentage offered their first choice82.286.688.4Number of applications for a secondary school place 11,15488,724548,006Of which: number offered their first choice9,40476,801460,836Percentage offered their first choice84.386.684.1

Academies

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 15 September 2016 to Question 45512, what grades of officials and which Ministers have the authority to make decisions on the approval or rejection of applications from maintained schools to convert to academy status.

Edward Timpson: The Secretary of State for Education has authorised the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools and eight regional schools commissioners (RSCs) to act on her behalf on the approval or rejection of applications for maintained schools to convert to academy status. RSCs are Director level civil servants; the Secretary of State remains accountable for, and has the power to overturn, their decisions. RSCs must make their decisions in line with a Decision Making Framework, which has been determined by ministers. The Decision Making Framework is published on gov.uk at:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/548540/RSC_Decision_Making_Framework_April_2016.pdf

Schools: Electrical Safety

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the implications for its policies of the decision by the Department of Health to remove electrical socket inserts from all premises where NHS care is delivered; and whether her Department plans to issue similar guidance.

Edward Timpson: The Department for Education has never required the use of socket covers in schools. All socket outlets in teaching areas of schools are designed to BS1363 and have built in safety shutters. The Department of Health guidance followed recent advice from electrical engineers that in some circumstances socket covers can compromise the safe operation of socket outlets and advises against their use.

Mandarin Language

Caroline Ansell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to increase the uptake of Mandarin.

Nick Gibb: Between 2012 and 2015, entries for Chinese GCSE in England increased by 34%. We introduced the Mandarin Excellence Programme this year for highly motivated pupils. It has started in 14 schools with more to follow over the next two years. The programme will result in at least 5,000 young people heading towards a high level of fluency in Mandarin by 2020.

Education

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the provisions in the Higher Education and Research Bill on part-time and adult students.

Joseph Johnson: In our assessment the Higher Education and Research Bill will benefit all students. The Bill will deliver greater competition and choice, promoting all forms of learning, including for part time and mature students. However, we are not waiting for the Bill to take action. We will introduce part time maintenance loans in 2018 and from next year allow many more part time students to take a second degree in any science subject.

Education Funding Agency: Buildings

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much the Education Funding Agency has spent to date on refurbishing the former East Ham Police Station; and how much of that sum was spent on demolition of the former accommodation for police officers.

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, on what date the Education Funding Agency purchased the former East Ham Police Station.

Edward Timpson: The Department approved £599,470 for works to the East Ham Former Police Station of which £476,947 was for the demolition of the accommodation building at the rear of the site and the remainder was used for essential maintenance works to the Grade II listed building to ensure it was safe. The purchase of East Ham Former Police Station was completed on 4th February 2014.

Teachers: Training

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to include training on selective mutism and other speech, language and communication needs in initial teacher training.

Nick Gibb: All initial teacher training (ITT) courses must ensure that trainee teachers can meet the Teachers’ Standards in full. The standards require trainees to have a clear understanding of the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Teachers must also be able to adapt teaching to the needs of all pupils, and have an understanding of the factors that can inhibit learning and how to overcome them. In July 2016, the Government published a new framework of core content for ITT, developed by an expert group chaired by Stephen Munday CBE. The new framework includes detailed content on SEND training, with emphasis on speech language and communication needs (SLCN). It specifies that: “Providers should ensure that trainees understand the principles of the SEND Code of Practice, are confident working with the four broad areas of need it identifies, and are able to adapt teaching strategies to ensure that pupils with SEND (including, but not limited to, autism, dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), sensory impairment or speech, and language and communication needs (SLCN)) can access and progress within the curriculum.” The new framework of content will help to ensure that all trainee teachers are equipped with the skills and knowledge they need to meet the Teachers’ Standards at the appropriate level. The new framework of core content for ITT can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/536890/Framework_Report_11_July_2016_Final.pdf.

Ministry of Justice

Miracle Mineral Solution

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to enable the prosecution of people who promote the use of miracle mineral solution as a cure for autism.

Sir Oliver Heald: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has issued advice that Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS) is not safe and should not be sold for human consumption. It has been working with local authorities across the country to share knowledge, investigate and disrupt the sale of MMS and other similar products. The FSA’s National Food Crime Unit has secured the removal of MMS products from major marketplace websites, and has shared information internationally through the National Crime Agency, alerting authorities in specific countries to the risks relating to known proponents of the use of MMS in this manner. Therefore, the Government has no plans to bring forward legislation in this area.

Taxis: Assistance Dogs

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions a level 3 fine was issued under the provisions of section 168 of the Equality Act 2010, relating to assistance dogs in taxis, in each year since 2011.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The number of offenders found guilty and sentenced at all courts for failure to comply with a section 168 duty in relation to an assistance dog for a disabled person, with the number sentenced to a fine and the number sentenced to a Level 3 fine (the maximum available for the offence), in England and Wales, from 2011 to 2015 can be viewed in the table. These offenders were all individuals rather than companies.Offenders sentenced at all courts for failure to comply with a Section 168 duty in relation to an assistance dog for a disabled person (1), England and Wales, 2011 to 2015 (2)(3)  Outcome20112012201320142015  Found guilty-1118Sentenced-1118of which Fine-1118of which £1000 (level 3)-----  '-' = Nil   (1) An offence under S168 Equality Act 2010  (2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.  (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services - Ministry of Justice.  Ref: PQ 47973

Matrimonial Property

Mr Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Government plans to bring forward legislation to reform the law relating to marital contracts.

Dr Phillip Lee: The Government is carefully considering the Law Commission’s proposals for qualifying nuptial agreements in the context of broader work on private family law.

Young Offenders: Mental Patients

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many young offenders under the age of 18 have been admitted to an adult mental health ward in each month since January 2014.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many young offenders under the age of 18 have been admitted to a children's mental health ward in each month since January 2014.

Dr Phillip Lee: We are committed to improving mental health treatment for young people in contact with the youth justice system. We are currently working with NHS England to develop a specific £24 million programme to address gaps in mental health provision for children and young people in contact with the justice system. The information requested is as follows: (1) Young offenders under the age of 18 (including those on remand) admitted to an adult mental health unit since January 2014 There was one such admission in November 2014. (2) Young offenders under the age of 18 (including those on remand) admitted to a children’s or adolescent mental health unit since January 2014 The number of such admissions is set out in the table below: Month of Admission Number Admitted  January 2014nilFebruary 20145March 20145April 20143May 20141June 2014nilJuly 20141August 2014nilSeptember 20142October 20143November 20141December 20144 Month of Admission Number Admitted  January 20152February 20151March 20151April 2015nilMay 20153June 20154July 20152August 20151September 20154October 20152November 2015nilDecember 20152 Month of Admission Number Admitted  January 2016nilFebruary 2016nilMarch 20161April 20163May 20163June 20161July 20162August 2016nil Note 1 – the figures may represent individual offenders admitted more than once since January 2014. Note 2 – these figures represent restricted patients only.

Victims' Commissioner

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the powers are of the Victims' Commissioner.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the Victims' Commissioner has the authority to investigate complaints about breaches of the Victims' Code; and whether the Commissioner can make recommendations.

Dr Phillip Lee: The role of the Commissioner for Victims and Witnesses is defined in the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004. It is to promote the interests of victims and witnesses, encourage good practice in their treatment, and regularly review the operation of the Code of Practice for Victims. The Commissioner can make proposals to the Secretary of State for amending the Code, may report to the Secretary of State in connection with her duties, may provide advice in relation to victims or witnesses as requested, and may make recommendations to authorities which fall within her remit. The Commissioner has no power to investigate individual cases or make recommendations on specific complaints. In line with the process set out in the Code, a victim is entitled to make a complaint to the service provider. If they remain dissatisfied they can refer their complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman via their member of Parliament. We know there is more to do to further increase the rights of victims. We will announce our plans in due course.

Crime: Victims

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether any amendments will be made to the Victims' Code as a result of the (a) coming into force of the EU Directive on victims' rights and (b) result of the EU membership referendum.

Dr Phillip Lee: As the PM told the House on 7 September, it would not be right for this Government to give a running commentary on EU negotiations.

Crime: Victims

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she plans to bring forward a green paper on the case for a victims' law during the current parliamentary session.

Dr Phillip Lee: I refer the honourable member to the answer given to PQ 46465 on 11 October.

Ministry of Justice: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if she will make a statement.

Sir Oliver Heald: Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation. There are currently no EU directives for which the MoJ has responsibility, and which the UK has opted into, which are awaiting transposition into UK law.

Offenders: Rehabilitation

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what rehabilitation programmes are provided for people serving prison sentences of 12 months or less.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Prisons should be places of safety and reform. We are determined to make prisons work, so that offenders come out of prison better able to find work and support their families, and less likely to reoffend.Those serving sentences of under 12 months in custody have access to education; work; offending behaviour programmes; health services, including help with drugs or alcohol problems; and resettlement support in custody and into the community. Our reforms to probation services mean that, for the first time in recent history, they also receive statutory support and supervision on release.

Personal Injury

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when her Department intends to publish a consultation on the personal injury reforms announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the 2015 Autumn Statement; and if she will make a statement.

Sir Oliver Heald: Ministers are considering this issue and the Government will publish details of its further reforms in the coming months.

Security

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 11 October 2016 to Question 46577 which foreign jurisdictions have made use of the information and resources to which she refers during the last five years; and how much has been received from such jurisdictions in fees.

Mr Sam Gyimah: As I stated in my earlier response, the National Offender Management Service can provide foreign jurisdictions access to a range of information including accredited programmes and related assessments and training in return for a fee, under a licence agreement. Over the last five years, we have provided intervention and assessment guidance under licence to Canada, New Zealand and the Netherlands and training to Ireland. We have received £11,340 in fees. All services and materials currently provided to foreign jurisdictions under a licence agreement are either free or provided on the basis of cost recovery only. With regard to services provided under the Just Solutions International brand, which was closed down in September 2015, details are fully documented in a National Audit Office report, available here: https://www.nao.org.uk/report/investigation-into-just-solutions-international/

Prime Minister

Prime Minister: Domestic Visits

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Prime Minister, on what occasions she has met and conversed with members of the public in her official capacity since she became Prime Minister on 13 July 2016.

Mrs Theresa May: I meet members of the public all the time.

Ministry of Defence

Saudi Arabia: Cluster Munitions

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether technical capacity for the launching of cluster munitions was provided with any UK-manufactured (a) aircraft and (b) unmanned aerial device exported to Saudi Arabia in the last 15 years.

Sir Michael Fallon: Holding answer received on 16 September 2016



No.

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Independence Payment

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether personal independence payment (PIP) assessors employed by (a) his Department, (b) Capita and (c) Atos Healthcare have targets of how many PIP claims they (i) reject and (ii) accept.

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department's staff performance monitoring includes key performance indicators on how many personal independence payment (PIP) claims are (a) accepted and (b) rejected by those staff who are PIP assessors.

Penny Mordaunt: The role of contracted Assessment Providers is to carry out health and disability assessments on behalf of the Department. They do not determine if a claim to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is successful. They provide a report to DWP decision makers who then determine entitlement to benefit. No targets are in place as to how many applications are successful.

Personal Independence Payment

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what qualifications are required of people who work as personal independence payment assessors.

Penny Mordaunt: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to his previous questions numbered 47755 and 47757 (PQs asked on Tuesday 11th October 2016).

Personal Independence Payment: Terminal Illnesses

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what measures his Department has put in place to ensure that terminally ill patients' needs are fully considered during personal independence payment assessments.

Penny Mordaunt: There are special rules and procedures for people who are terminally ill and make a claim to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) meaning that their claims are fast tracked and they are guaranteed immediate, unconditional entitlement to the enhanced rate of the daily living component, without an assessment of their needs.To ensure correct decisions are made as quickly as possible, factual information on the claimant’s condition, clinical features and current/planned treatment is captured on the DS1500 form. This is completed by their GP, hospital consultant or delegated practice/special nurse (e.g. a Macmillan nurse).The Department has worked closely with organisations supporting terminally ill people, such as Macmillan Cancer Support, to ensure that the service we offer works as effectively and efficiently as possible. This collaborative approach has resulted in the Department introducing a dedicated telephone service for terminally ill claimants and introducing an electronic method of submitting a DS1500 form from the claimant’s medical practitioner.

Personal Independence Payment

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what criteria determine whether personal independence payment assessors receive financial bonuses in addition to their salary.

Penny Mordaunt: The Department does not prescribe providers with criteria on how they should pay salary or bonuses to their staff. That is purely a commercial decision for the assessment provider.

Employment: EU Nationals

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to safeguard the jobs of EU nationals living in the UK after the UK leaves the EU.

Damian Hinds: Our country remains open for business. Employment is at a record high with a almost a million new businesses in our country since 2010 and we will always welcome those with the skills, the drive and the expertise to make our nation better still. The Prime Minister has been clear that she wants to protect the status of EU nationals already living here, and the only circumstances in which that wouldn’t be possible is if British citizens’ rights in European member states were not protected.

Social Security Benefits: Children in Care

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the report by the Children's Society, The cost of being care free, published in June 2016, if he will take steps to provide additional protection for care leavers to reduce the number of benefits sanctions being applied to such people.

Damian Hinds: Our primary goal is to help care leavers get into work wherever possible and our interventions are tailored to achieve this. Care leavers aged between 18 and 21 have the opportunity to join the Work Programme from day one of their benefit claim, so that they receive tailored, locally-appropriate employment support at the earliest opportunity. We also provide additional support, over and above the standard Jobcentre Plus offer, to young claimants, including care leavers, aged 18-24. Work Coaches tailor interventions to the needs of the individual to address a variety of barriers to work, including improving job search skills, referral to skills and other work-related training such as Traineeships, Apprenticeships and work experience.We have safeguards in place for care leavers along with other claimants who may be considered vulnerable. Work Coaches support all claimants with complex needs, or who require additional support, to ensure that they fully understand what they have been asked to do to enable them to access DWP benefits and use our services.Care leavers, like all claimants, take ownership of planning how they will meet their requirements and ultimately secure employment. They will be supported by their Work Coach who will assist them in meeting their requirements through providing encouragement and direction, using a range of communication methods.

Department for Work and Pensions: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

Damian Hinds: The only agreed EU directive which has not yet been transposed directly into UK law is 2013/59/Euratom (laying down basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation, and repealing Directives 89/618/Euratom, 90/641/Euratom, 96/29/Euratom, 97/43/Euratom and 2003/122/Euratom). This is a joint transposition with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The transposition deadline is 6 February 2018.

Personal Independence Payment

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the second table on page five of his Department's document, Personal Independence Payment: Official Statistics, if he will provide the data on reconsideration outcomes by (a) category or disabling condition, (b) sub-group and (c) disability in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Penny Mordaunt: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Personal Independence Payment

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of (a) Atos and (b) Capita personal independence payment assessments have been carried out in the applicant's home in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Penny Mordaunt: Atos has delivered just under 1 in 5 of its assessments at claimants’ homes while Capita has delivered just under 3 in 5 for the same period (January to September 2016).Capita has chosen to develop a business model which delivers more home visits - although this is not a contractual requirement. Atos’ business model is more assessment centre based.

Children: Maintenance

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many families in the North East received child maintenance through the (a) Child Support Agency and (b) Child Maintenance Service in 2015-16; and how many of those families were (i) single-parent families, (ii) low-income families, (iii) survivors of domestic violence and (iv) workless households.

Caroline Nokes: a) Child Support AgencyWe are unable to give a figure on how many total cases have received a payment in 2015-16 via the Child Support Agency as this is not routinely recorded for management information purposes and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. However we can provide a position at the beginning and end of the year 2015-16.As at March 2015 there were 75,500 live cases being managed by the Child Support Agency in the North East.As at March 2016 there were 69,100 live cases being managed by the Child Support Agency in the North East.Further breakdowns for single parent families, low income families, survivors of domestic families and workless families are not routinely recorded for management information purposes and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.b) Child Maintenance ServiceWe are not yet in a position to release geographical breakdowns on the 2012 Scheme, administered by the Child Maintenance Service, but when data become available and fully quality assured they will be released as part of a managed process, which will be pre-announced and in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.Notes:1- Figures rounded to nearest 100.

Children: Maintenance

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to review the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the Child Maintenance Service for families which use that service.

Caroline Nokes: The efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the Child Maintenance Service, like other operational services within the Department, are reviewed regularly by senior management.

Children: Maintenance

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of moving the Child Support Agency to the Child Maintenance Service on (a) single-parent families, (b) low-income families, (c) survivors of domestic violence and (d) workless households.

Caroline Nokes: My Department is currently implementing the published evaluation strategy for the child maintenance reforms, and the impact will be considered once the programme of work has been completed.

Children: Maintenance

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps his Department is taking to reduce the level of child maintenance arrears.

Caroline Nokes: We have at our disposal a range of strong enforcement powers, intended to ensure all parents fulfil their financial responsibilities towards their children. We use all of the powers available to us where it is appropriate to do so, and we are seeking to extend these where appropriate, for instance by deducting money from bank accounts held jointly by the paying parent.We take into consideration a number of factors when deciding if and what type of enforcement action to take, including the welfare of any relevant children involved and the likelihood of collecting monies owed. Taking enforcement action can be a costly process, particularly in cases where the paying parent is determined not to pay – we must therefore ensure we maximise the efficiency and effectiveness of our enforcement system, deciding what is appropriate on a case by case basis and using powers that have the greatest chance of ensuring people meet their obligations and securing money for children.

Children: Poverty

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the number of children living in relative poverty in the UK (a) on the latest date for which figures are available and (b) a year before that date.

Damian Hinds: Estimates of the number of children in relative low income in the UK are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series.In 2014/15 on a Before Housing Cost basis (BHC); there were 2.5 million children in relative poverty in the UK. In the previous year (2013/14) there were 2.3 million children in relative poverty in the UK. This increase however is not statistically significant.The Prime Minister is clear that tackling poverty and disadvantage, and delivering real social reform, is a priority for this Government and we will be coming back to the House with a number of announcements over the coming months.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Organic Farming

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if her Department will commission research into the economic, social and environmental contribution of the organic farming sector in England to assist in informing policy and funding of this sector once the UK leaves the EU.

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if her Department will commission research into the economic, social and environmental contributions of small farms in England to inform policy and funding of this sector once the UK leaves the EU.

George Eustice: As part of our commitment to evidence-based policy making, we regularly collect and analyse data on all farm types – including small farms and organic enterprises. We will continue to develop our evidence base to inform policy development, and are committed to working with the industry to ensure a vibrant and productive future for all agricultural sectors outside of the European Union.

Cattle: Diseases

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the number of cattle which have died of disease or were put down on account of disease in each of the last five years.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the number of pigs which have died of disease or were put down on account of disease in each of the last five years.

George Eustice: Defra collects data on cases of notifiable or reportable diseases, as per a legal requirement. The department does not estimate the number of all cattle or all pigs which have died of disease or were put down on account of disease as the department does not collect cattle or pigs death data. There have been no pig deaths due to notifiable disease in Great Britain in the last 5 years. There were two cattle deaths in 2015 from Anthrax. The most recent data on Bovine Tuberculosis is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/incidence-of-tuberculosis-tb-in-cattle-in-great-britain

Non-native Species: EU Law

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to enforce the EU-wide ban on 37 invasive species.

George Eustice: The EU Regulation on Invasive Alien Species came into force in January 2015, with the first list of 37 banned species published in August 2016.We are preparing to introduce penalties and sanctions for breaches of the restrictions. We will also be setting up a permitting process. We plan to consult on our proposals shortly.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: As of 12 October 2016, there were 11 EU directives awaiting transposition into UK law. These are detailed in the table below.DirectiveTittle2013/51/EURATOMDirective 2013/51/EURATOM of 22 October 2013 laying down requirements for the protection of the health of the general public with regard to radioactive substances in water intended for human consumption.2014/97/EUCommission Implementing Directive 2014/97/EU of 15 October 2014 implementing Council Directive 2008/90/EC as regards the registration of suppliers and of varieties and the common list of varieties.2014/96/EUCommission Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU of 15 October 2014 on the requirements for the labelling, sealing and packaging of fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants intended for fruit production, falling within the scope of Council Directive 2008/90/EC.2014/98/EUCommission Implementing Directive 2014/98/EU of 15 October 2014 implementing Council Directive 2008/90/EC as regards specific requirements for the genus and species of fruit plants referred to in Annex I thereto, specific requirements to be met by suppliers and detailed rules concerning official inspections.2015/412/EUCommission Directive 2015/412/EU of 11 March 2015 amending Directive 2001/18/EC as regards the possibility for the Member States to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in their territory.2015/996/EUCommission Directive (EU) 2015/996 of 19 May 2015 establishing common noise assessment methods according to Directive 2002/49/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council.2015/1480/EUCommission Directive (EU) 2015/1480 of 28 August 2015 amending several annexes to Directives 2004/107/EC and 2008/50/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down the rules concerning reference methods, data validation and location of sampling points for the assessment of ambient air quality.2015/1787/EUCOMMISSION DIRECTIVE (EU) 2015/1787 of 6 October 2015 amending Annexes II and III to Council Directive 98/83/EC on the quality of water intended for human consumption2015/2193/EUDirective (EU) 2015/2193 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015 on the limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into the air from medium combustion plants2016/11/EUCommission Implementing Directive 2016/11 of 5 January 2016 amending Annex II to Council Directive 2002/57/EC on the marketing of seed oil and fibre plants2016/317/EUCOMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DIRECTIVE (EU) 2016/317 of 3 March 2016 amending Council Directives 66/401/EEC, 66/402/EEC, 2002/54/EC, 2002/55/EC, 2002/56/EC and 2002/57/EC as regards the official label of seed packages

Air Pollution

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which local authorities have breached legal air quality limits in the last year.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra uses both monitoring and modelling to assess air quality in the UK. Currently, 156 monitoring stations in the national network report near-real-time data on five key pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), sulphur dioxide (SO2), ozone (O3) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). Information about these sites and modelled data is available on Defra’s UK-Air website. Latest compliance data show that the UK is meeting the EU limit values for all pollutants covered by the European air quality Directives other than those for NO2. That is why in December last year, the Government published the national air quality plan for reducing NO2 concentrations through a new programme of Clean Air Zones in five cities in England, including Leeds, Nottingham and Southampton, as well as Birmingham and Derby, along with the Ultra-Low Emission Zone in London. The plan combines targeted local and national measures and continued investment in clean technologies. The councils which were observed to have exceedances of the annual mean NO2 limit value in 2015 are in the attached table.



PQ 47949 - Local Authorities with exceedances of N
(PDF Document, 214.64 KB)

Agriculture: Floods

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of applications to the Farming Recovery Fund have been paid to farmers affected by flooding since December 2015.

George Eustice: The Farming Recovery Fund was set up as part of a wider £250 million package of government support set up to help communities affected by the devastating December floods. £9,076,248 of RDPE funding was approved to support 1,015 projects to restore damaged agricultural land. Applicants have until the end of December 2016 to carry out the restoration work and claim their grant, although a small number have requested extensions to that deadline. As of 7 October 2016, claims have been submitted by 495 applicants, for a total value of £3,668,896. 338 of those claims have been paid out, with a total value of £2,306,386, which is approximately 26% of the total grant approved. The Rural Payments Agency recently wrote to all applicants who have not submitted claims with guidance on completing the claim form.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Vaccination

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much her Department has spent to date of the £1.25 million committed to the Badger Edge Vaccination Scheme.

George Eustice: Defra Badger Edge Vaccination Scheme projects in England were funded on the basis of actual work done by the grant beneficiaries with no specific total amount committed to the Scheme. Defra spent just over £92,000 on these projects in the 2015/16 financial year, with additional in-kind support in the form of free loans of equipment, supply of the Badger BGC vaccine and advice from field experts. Although no vaccination of badgers under the Scheme is possible in 2016, we have awarded grant funding to three of the former beneficiaries for other vaccination-related work. The amounts payable to each will depend on the work that they do in the current financial year

Bovine Tuberculosis: Vaccination

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has had discussions with suppliers other than Statens Serum Institut to procure the BCG vaccine.

George Eustice: My officials have had initial discussions with other potential suppliers of BCG vaccine about the possibility of future supply

Common Fisheries Policy

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to ensure that (a) the Maximum Sustainable Yield and (b) other objectives of the Common Fisheries Policy are incorporated into UK legislation by 2020.

George Eustice: No decisions have yet been taken, although the Government remains committed to sustainable fisheries and the ending of discards, as set out in its manifesto commitments.

Home Office

Immigrants: Detainees

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much compensation her Department paid for the unlawful detention of individuals under immigration powers in each of the last three financial years; for what categories of reason such compensation was paid; and how many such payments were made for each such category of reason.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Holding answer received on 13 October 2016



Our records indicate that over the past 3 financial years (covering 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15), that a total of £13.8 million has been paid out to 573 claimants, as per the below table. All of whom were paid compensation following a period of unlawful detention.Financial YearTotal Unlawful Detention Compensation payments (£ million)Number of claimants for the last 3 financial yearsFY 2012-13£ 5.0195FY 2013-14£ 4.8199FY 2014-15£ 4.0179Caveat to provided data: This is provisional management information that is subject to change. It has not been assured to the standard of Official Statistics.

British Nationality: EU Nationals

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many citizenship applications from EU nationals have been rejected as a result of changes to the rules on the evidence required to demonstrate permanent residence since those changes came into force.

Mr Robert Goodwill: No statistical information is available showing the reason for rejection of citizenship applications.

Home Office: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force.

Asylum: Children

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to speed up family reunification in the UK for unaccompanied refugee children currently in Europe.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Under the Immigration Act 2016, we made a commitment to transfer unaccompanied refugee children from Europe to the UK, where it is in their best interests. Between 12 May and 1 October 2016 over 50 children who meet the criteria in the Immigration Act have been accepted for transfer, over 35 have already been transferred.We are fully committed to the implementation of Section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016. We are in active discussions with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UNICEF, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the French, Italian and Greek Governments to strengthen and speed up mechanisms to identify, assess and transfer children to the UK. We have secondees in Greece and Italy and we have recently seconded another UK expert to France.On 10 October, the Home Secretary met with French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve to discuss a range of issues, including the proposed clearance of the camp in Calais. The Home Secretary made clear that we will transfer as many minors as possible who have family links that would qualify under the Dublin Regulation before the camp clearance starts. The Home Secretary further emphasised that the remaining children, who may be eligible to come to the UK under the Dubs amendment must be moved to safe facilities where their best interests can be properly considered. Home Office teams are being deployed to France over the coming weeks to work with the French authorities to speed up the identification and transfer of eligible cases.More broadly, the family reunion provisions under the Immigration Rules allow children to be reunited with a parent who has been granted refugee status or humanitarian protection in the UK; unless the applicant and/or the family member should be excluded from protection or criminality thresholds apply.

Police: Cars

Gerald Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police cars were sold by police forces in England and Wales in each year between 2010 and 2015.

Brandon Lewis: The Home Office does not hold this information.

Asylum: Vetting

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to paragraph 1.2.3.2 of Schedule 2 to the Compass contract for accommodation for asylum seekers in the Midlands and East of England, what arrangements are in place to ensure that all contractor staff and sub-contractors who are likely to have contact with service users are subject to criminal records bureau and disclosure checks prior to working on that contract; who is responsible for applying such checks; and what the pass rate was for any such checks in 2015-16.

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to paragraph 1.2.3.2 of Schedule 2 to the Compass contract for accommodation for asylum seekers in the North-West Region, what arrangements are in place to ensure that all contractor staff and sub-contractors who are likely to have contact with service users are subject to criminal records bureau and disclosure checks prior to working on that contract; who is responsible for applying such checks; and what the pass rate was for any such checks in 2015-16.

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to paragraph 1.2.3.2 of Schedule 2 to the Compass contract for accommodation for asylum seekers in London and the South-East Region, what arrangements are in place to ensure that all contractor staff and sub-contractors who are likely to have contact with service users are subject to a criminal records bureau and disclosure checks prior to working under that contract; who is responsible for applying such checks; and what the pass rate was for any such checks in 2015-16.

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to paragraph 1.2.3.2 of Schedule 2 to the Compass contract for accommodation for asylum seekers in Wales and South-West, what arrangements are in place to ensure that all contractor staff and sub-contractors who are likely to have contact with service users are subject to a criminal records bureau and disclosure checks prior to working under that contract; who is responsible for applying such checks; and what the pass rate was for any such checks in 2015-16.

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to paragraph 1.2.3.2 of Schedule 2 to the Compass contract for accommodation for asylum seekers in Scotland and Northern Ireland, what arrangements are in place to ensure that all contractor staff and sub-contractors who are likely to have contact with service users are subject to criminal records bureau and disclosure checks prior to working under that contract; who is responsible for applying such checks; and what the pass rate was for any such checks in 2015-16.

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to paragraph 1.2.3.2 of Schedule 2 to the Compass contract for accommodation for asylum seekers in the North-East, Yorkshire and Humber region, what arrangements are in place to ensure that all contractor staff and sub-contractors who are likely to have contact with service users are subject to criminal records bureau and disclosure checks prior to working under that contract; who is responsible for applying such checks; and what the pass rate was for any such checks in 2015-16.

Mr Robert Goodwill: It is the responsibility of the COMPASS providers to ensure that all staff recruitment meets required contractual standards.Criminal record checks are obtained through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Eligibility is reserved for a limited range of sensitive roles, most of which involve working closely with children or vulnerable adults. It is the individual who is the subject of the check who must make the application to the DBS, but this application has to be sent via a “registered body” (often the employer) which is responsible for checking eligibility and identity. It is for individual employers and regulators to consider the content of checks and to use that as part of their decision making process.Providers are monitored extremely closely to ensure that they undertake appropriate risk assessments in relation to their employees and that there is no risk posed to service users.The COMPASS contracts include measures to ensure any issues are quickly addressed. On a monthly basis providers, in their report to the Contract Management Group, record the detail of personnel changes including specific reference to vetting and disclosure requirements. Personnel who do not meet the requirements cannot be engaged in providing the services. Implementing the requirements and ensuring that all the required pre employment checks are undertaken is completed by the Provider – monthly monitoring of the process is undertaken by both parties at the Contract Management Group.

Vetting

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the delays in the processing of Disclosure and Barring service checks.

Sarah Newton: Protecting the public is a priority for this Government and it is important that checks undertaken are thorough. I maintain a close interest in disclosure turnaround times and receive monthly reports from the Disclosure and Barring Service.The Disclosure and Barring Service is reliant on police forces completing their checks in a timely manner. If police force performance falls below the agreed standard, the DBS will work with the force concerned to support a recovery plan.

Stalking

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were (a) charged, (b) prosecuted and (c) convicted of stalking under Section 4a of the Protection from Harassment Act in (i) 2012-13, (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15; and what the average sentence was for such offences in each such year.

Sarah Newton: Stalking can have terrifying consequences, and the Government is determined to do everything it can to protect victims and stop perpetrators at the earliest opportunity.Figures on the number of charges are not collated centrally. Figures on the number of prosecutions, convictions and sentence lengths are published by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the Ministry of Justice. The CPS Violence Against Women and Girls report published on 6 September 2016 shows that in 2012-13 there were 91 prosecutions following the introduction of the offence in November 2012, in 2013-14 1,489 prosecutions and in 2014-15 1,103.Figures on average sentence length are available in the Ministry of Justice publication “Criminal Justice system statistics quarterly: December 2015.” This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2015

Passports

Dr Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the possible closure of the Collective Passport Office will have on the ability of pupils from lower income families to afford passports for school trips.

Dr Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many stakeholders within the Collective Passport Service were consulted about the possible closure of the Collective Passport Office in Durham.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Holding answer received on 19 October 2016



A review of the collective passport is ongoing and an announcement will be made once this has been completed. The collective passport remains available for those who require it.

Internet: Bullying

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police cautions have been issued for offences under (a) section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 and (b) section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988.

Brandon Lewis: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Internet: Bullying

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what representations she has received from women's groups on the problems associated with harmful speech on the internet.

Sarah Newton: Holding answer received on 19 October 2016



The Home Office routinely meets with women’s groups to discuss a range of issues around ending violence against women and girls, including problems associated with harmful speech on the internet. The Government continues to work closely with social media companies and other relevant stakeholders and experts to make sure they are doing all they can to protect those who use their platforms.

Security Guards: Licensing

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average time taken to process a Security Industry Authority licence application has been in the last year.

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Security Industry Authority licence applications were received in each of the last 12 months; and how many such applications were processed within 25 days.

Brandon Lewis: Holding answer received on 19 October 2016



The average time taken to process applications is unavailable in the format requested. The SIA’s new IT system (introduced in July 2016) enables more detailed performance analysis. The system shows that the average number of days for processing applications (including renewals) was 38 days in July and 30 days in August. Once fully embedded, the SIA expect that the processing time for applications will be quicker than under the old system. The Security Industry Authority (SIA) have an annual performance target to process 80% of applications (including renewals) within 25 working days. The SIA met this annual target in the 2015/16 financial year. Performance for 2016/2017 to date is included in the table below. ApplicationsPercentage within 25 working daysSep-151161889%Oct-151079985%Nov-151049983%Dec-15858976%Jan-16990580%Feb-161059783%Mar-161035285%Apr-16995186%May-16988981%Jun-16927780%Jul-16630546%Aug-16920872%

Immigration

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the effect on the level of immigration of each of the measures announced in her speech to the Conservative Party conference.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Holding answer received on 19 October 2016



The Government will launch a consultation on the proposals announced by the Home Secretary. We will use the feedback from businesses and the education sector to inform our decisions.

Wales Office

UK Withdrawal from EU: Wales

Nick Thomas-Symonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on its role in negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.

Alun Cairns: The Prime Minister has committed to full engagement with the Devolved Administrations to get the best possible deal for all parts of our United Kingdom as we leave the EU. We will give the Welsh Government every opportunity to have their say as we form our negotiating strategy and we will look at any suggestions they put forward.

EU Grants and Loans: Wales

Danny Kinahan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what steps he is taking to ensure that Wales receives the maximum funding possible from the EU before the UK leaves the EU.

Alun Cairns: The Government is taking a practical approach to EU funding. As my Rt hon Friend the Chancellor has made clear, structural and investment funds projects signed before the date of exit will be fully funded by the Treasury even where payments fall after we leave the EU; in keeping with the devolution settlement, it will be for the Welsh Government to decide the conditions used to assess projects within its devolved competence.

HM Treasury

Affordable Housing: EU Grants and Loans

John Healey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to ensure that any shortfall in European Investment Bank finance for affordable homes as a result of the UK leaving the EU will be met by the UK Government.

Mr David Gauke: The UK remains a full member of the European Union and it retains all of the rights, obligations and benefits that membership brings. The EIB continues to lend to UK projects and a number of UK project financing deals have been approved and signed since the referendum result. The long-term relationship between the UK and the EIB will need to be resolved as part of negotiations surrounding the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. The Government is committed to social housing and the Spending Review announced that the government will invest over £8 billion in housing over the next five years to deliver 400,000 affordable homes.

Transport: South Wales

Stephen Doughty: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential economic effect of the withdrawal of EU funding on the South Wales metro project.

Mr David Gauke: The UK Government will guarantee funding otherwise expected from the EU for structural and investment projects in Wales, including European Regional Development projects, signed before we leave the EU. It will be for the Welsh Government to make an assessment of which projects should be pursued in areas of its competence within its MFF allocations in this period, and this guarantee will apply to any such projects.

EU Budget: Contributions

Matthew Pennycook: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of extracting the UK from EU shared payment liabilities once the UK exits the EU.

Matthew Pennycook: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of extracting the UK from EU shared contingent liabilities and loan guarantees once the UK exits the EU.

Mr David Gauke: These are two of a whole range of issues and elements to our relationship with the European Union that will need to be addressed as we leave. These issues affect both sides, the UK and the EU. The government will not be giving a running commentary on the details.

Apprentices: Taxation

Anna Turley: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the timeframe to implement the Apprenticeship Levy; and what steps he is taking to ensure that businesses affected by the levy are given adequate time to make adjustments.

Mr David Gauke: From April 2017 the government will introduce a levy to fund the step change needed to achieve 3 million apprenticeship starts and an uplift in their quality by 2020. The systems required to implement this in time for April 2017 are on track and are being tested on a regular basis. This includes progress by both HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), with regards to the collection of the levy, and from the Skills Funding Agency who are building the digital accounts for employers to access levy funds. The Department for Education has issued guidance for employers regarding the apprenticeship levy. Further guidance, confirming the funding policy, will be published shortly. HMRC has also issued guidance to software developers to ensure that employers’ payroll systems are ready for the apprenticeship levy and will publish further guidance for employers in December. The government have been working with employers and training providers since the concept of the apprenticeship levy was introduced to ensure that it works for them. These conversations have played a major part in shaping how the apprenticeship levy will work and we will continue these discussions to assist employers and providers as they prepare for the introduction of the levy.

Cabinet Office

Gulf Strategy Unit

Margaret Ferrier: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the remit is of the Gulf Strategy Unit; when the Unit was established; how many staff the Unit is intended to employ; and what the proposed budget for the Unit is.

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much funding the Gulf Strategy Unit has received in each of the last 15 years.

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the Gulf Strategy Unit's remit is; and which Government Minister set that remit.

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many (a) military and (b) civilian Government employees have been employed in the Gulf Strategy Unit in each of the last 15 years.

Ben Gummer: The Gulf Strategy Integrated Delivery Team was established in 2015.Its remit is to coordinate the Government’s strategic approach to UK engagement with the Gulf States as set out in the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015.It employs three full-time and one part-time Government employees. One is military and three are civilian.Administration costs were £70,004 in the 2015-16 financial year and the budget for administration costs in the 2016-17 financial year is £423,000. The 2015-16 figure reflects the fact the unit was established later in the financial year.

Cabinet Office: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Gummer: Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation. The outcome of these negotiations will determine what arrangements apply in relation to EU legislation in future once the UK has left the EU.The only agreed EU directive which has not yet been transposed directly into UK law from the perspective of the Cabinet Office is as follows:Directive 2014/55/EU on electronic invoicing in public procurement has yet to be transposed.

Nitrous Oxide: Misuse

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many deaths from the abuse of nitrous oxide were recorded for each region of England and Wales for each (a) age and (b) gender in 2015.

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many deaths from volatile substance abuse were recorded in each region of England and Wales for each (a) substance, (b) age and (c) gender in 2015.

Chris Skidmore: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response to 47932 47933
(PDF Document, 236.25 KB)

Advisory Committee on Business Appointments

Paul Flynn: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the process used by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments in drawing up its advice on appointments to be taken by former Ministers and former civil servants.

Ben Gummer: I refer the honourable gentleman to my answer of 17th October, given in response to PQ 47620.

Department for International Trade

Overseas Trade: Pakistan

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions he has had with (a) the government of Pakistan and (b) other key stakeholders on promoting UK trade with that country.

Greg Hands: The Department for International Trade and other departments, have extensive contact with their counterparts in Pakistan. Discussions routinely cover enhancing bilateral trade and investment, and business climate reform in Pakistan. The Prime Minister met Pakistan’s Prime Minister Sharif on 20 September, and they discussed trade relations.

Department for International Trade: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

Greg Hands: Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation.

Drugs

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many meetings (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have had with key stakeholders in the pharmaceutical sector on the effect of the UK leaving the EU since 23 June 2016.

Greg Hands: Holding answer received on 18 October 2016



Details of Ministers meetings with external organisations are published on a quarterly basis.Since 23 June 2016, Department for International Trade officials have held many meetings with key stakeholders in the pharmaceutical sector at which the effect of the UK leaving the EU has been discussed.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Social Networking: Pornography

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to encourage children not to access indecent images on social media.

Matt Hancock: The UK is a world leader in child online safety, with legal protections against abuse and illegal content, and tools for parents and children to avoid content they do not wish to see. The UK Council for Child Internet Safety, (https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/uk-council-for-child-internet-safety-ukccis) set up in 2008, brings Government together with key stakeholders to help to keep children and young people safe online. We also have a strong track-record in working with the internet industries to drive progress. We have introduced legislation in the Digital Economy bill to require age verification controls for access to online pornographic material provided on a commercial basis.

Telecommunications: Regulation

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the power conferred on Ofcom to regulation offensive communications sent in the UK on (a) the internet and (b) social media platforms.

Matt Hancock: We are aware of concerns about offensive content on social media. Where this is the case Government expects social media providers to have robust process in place and act promptly when abuse is reported. The UK has strict laws governing such content, which apply equally online and offline. Ofcom does not regulate offensive communications on either the internet or social media platforms. The Communications Act 2003 requires Ofcom to set standards to ensure that generally accepted standards are applied to the content of television and radio programmes.

Department of Health

Midwives: Migrant Workers

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many midwives from other EU countries work at hospitals in (a) Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust, (b) St Helens and Knowsley Hospital Services NHS Trust, (c) Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, (d) Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, (e) Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust and (f) Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Mr Philip Dunne: Information is not available in the format requested. Information showing the number of midwives from other European Union countries for specified National Health Service trusts as at 30 June 2016 is shown in the following table.  Full-time equivalentAintree University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust-Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust-Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust2St Helens and Knowsley Hospitals NHS Trust2Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust3Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust1Source: NHS Digital Notes:EU countries include the following countries; Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden, as per the link:https://www.gov.uk/eu-eeaThe nationality field available within the Electronic Staff Record system upon which these figures are based, contains self-reported information from individual employees.Nationally over 95,000 NHS staff records do not contain useful data with people choosing not to specify their nationality or not asked to.In addition, as nationality is self-reported, the value entered by an individual may reflect their cultural heritage rather than their country of birth. As such, these figures should be treated with a significant degree of caution. Therefore these figures do not necessarily equate to migrants from other countries, and such data is not captured elsewhere in the workforce systems.Full-time equivalent figures are rounded to the nearest whole number. ‘-‘ denotes zero.Following a public consultation in 2015, categorisation of trusts and staff groups has changed therefore restricting comparability with previous publications. Because of these changes, these statistics are classed as experimental. More details regarding these changes can be found in the outcomes of the consultation document available at the following link:http://content.digital.nhs.uk/hchsNHS Digital seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data but responsibility for data accuracy lies with the organisations providing the data. Methods are continually being updated to improve data quality. Where changes impact on figures already published, this is assessed but unless it is significant at national level figures are not changed. Impact at detailed or local level is footnoted in relevant analyses.

Accident and Emergency Departments: Waiting Lists

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the average waiting times for treatment in the accident and emergency departments of the (a) Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust, (b) St Helens and Knowsley Hospital Services NHS Trust, (c) Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, (d) Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, (e) Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust in the last six months.

Mr Philip Dunne: NHS Digital, Hospital Episode Statistics measure accident and emergency waiting times from arrival to assessment, treatment and departure. A table showing the mean and median waiting times for the last six months is below for Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust, St Helens and Knowsley Hospital Services NHS Trust, Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust. Data for 2015-16 and 2016-17 is provisional and may be subject to in-year changes. Mean and median duration in minutes to assessment1, treatment2 and departure3 for unplanned accident and emergency (A&E) attendances4 at specified providers for February to July 2016 (provisional data)5Provider NamePeriodDuration to Assessment2Duration to Treatment3Duration to Departure4Mean1Median1Mean1Median1Mean1Median1(minutes)(minutes)(minutes)(minutes)(minutes)(minutes)Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS TrustFebruary 20161456129150103March 20162176839162115April 2016319159223178May 2016418055214168June 2016418663202171July 20169210687203176St Helens and Knowsley Hospitals NHS TrustFebruary 201630197760188129March 201631218771194136April 201635187757160120May 201630218366169137June 201634218359182133July 201633217355182127Aintree University Hospital NHS Foundation TrustFebruary 201615116854161120March 201615127256166122April 20161295942144104May 20161896643154106June 201614106444145100July 201615116846151104Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation TrustFebruary 201629199889228193March 2016332310696231197April 201621159184206187May 201625179991212184June 201622169282188173July 201626198378192170Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS TrustFebruary 20161138866157112March 20161249271162118April 201672705113995May 201662674713591June 201674644512788July 201684714913891Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS Digital Notes: Activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector. 1 Mean and Median: The mean (average) and median (middle) in ranking when all values are sorted in order) duration in minutes to assessment, treatment or duration. 2 Duration to assessment: This is the total amount of time in minutes between the patients’ arrival and their initial assessment in the A&E department. This is calculated as the difference in time from arrival at A&E to the time when the patient is initially assessed. 3 Duration to treatment: This is the total amount of time in minutes between the patients’ arrival and the start of their treatment. This is calculated as the difference in time from arrival at A&E to the time when the patient began treatment. 4 Duration to departure: This is total amount of time spent in minutes in an A&E department. This is calculated as the difference in time from arrival at A&E to the time when the patient is discharged from A&E care. This includes being admitted to hospital, dying in the department, discharged with no follow up or discharged and referred to another specialist department. 5 2015-16 and 2016-17 is provisional data and may be incomplete or contain errors for which no adjustments have yet been made.

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the number of cancelled elective operations in the (a) Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust, (b) St Helens and Knowsley Hospital Services NHS Trust, (c) Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, (d) Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, (e) Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust and (f) Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in the last six months.

Mr Philip Dunne: NHS England publishes information each quarter on the number of last minute elective operations cancelled for non-clinical reasons. The following table shows this information for the specified trusts in the two most recent quarters. A last minute cancellation is defined as when a patient’s operation is cancelled by the hospital on or after the day of admission, including the day of surgery, for non-clinical reasons. Number of last minute elective operations cancelled for non-clinical reasons for specified trusts, Quarter 4 2015/16 and Quarter 1 2016/17 Quarter 4 2015/16Quarter 1 2016/17Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust11393St Helens and Knowsley Hospital Services NHS Trust161102Aintree University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust6739Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust5561Southport And Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust7727Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust031Source: Cancelled elective operations, NHS England Note:Quarter 2 data will be published on 11 November 2016.

Hospitals: Finance

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the budget deficits are at the (a) Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust, (b) St Helens and Knowsley Hospital Services NHS Trust, (c) Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, (d) Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, (e) Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust and (f) Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Mr Philip Dunne: The latest financial positions of individual National Health Service trusts are published in NHS trust Board papers, available on NHS trust websites.

Doctors: Migrant Workers

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many doctors from other EU countries work at hospitals in (a) Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust, (b) St Helens and Knowsley Hospital Services NHS Trust, (c) Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, (d) Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, (e) Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust and (f) Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Mr Philip Dunne: Information is not available in the format requested. Information showing the number of medical and dental staff from other EU countries for specified National Health Service trusts as at 30 June 2016 is shown in the following table.  Full-time equivalentAintree University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust53Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust76Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust20St Helens and Knowsley Hospitals NHS Trust46Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust27Source: NHS Digital Notes:EU countries include the following countries; Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden, as per the link:https://www.gov.uk/eu-eeaThe nationality field available within the Electronic Staff Record system upon which these figures are based, contains self-reported information from individual employees.Nationally over 95,000 NHS staff records do not contain useful data with people choosing not to specify their nationality or not asked to.In addition, as nationality is self-reported, the value entered by an individual may reflect their cultural heritage rather than their country of birth. As such, these figures should be treated with a significant degree of caution. Therefore these figures do not necessarily equate to migrants from other countries, and such data is not captured elsewhere in the workforce systems.Full-time equivalent figures are rounded to the nearest whole number.Following a public consultation in 2015, categorisation of trusts and staff groups has changed therefore restricting comparability with previous publications. Because of these changes, these statistics are classed as experimental. More details regarding these changes can be found in the outcomes of the consultation document available at the following link:http://content.digital.nhs.uk/hchsNHS Digital seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data but responsibility for data accuracy lies with the organisations providing the data. Methods are continually being updated to improve data quality. Where changes impact on figures already published, this is assessed but unless it is significant at national level figures are not changed. Impact at detailed or local level is footnoted in relevant analyses.

Hospitals: Temporary Employment

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much (a) Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust, (b) St Helens and Knowsley Hospital Services NHS Trust, (c) Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, (d) Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, (e) Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust and (f) Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust spent on agency medical staff in (i) 2014-15 and (ii) 2015-16.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Department does not collect data on which specific area of employment provider expenditure was incurred under. Data is however collected in totality for employees under temporary or agency contracts. The total temporary and agency staff expenditure incurred by the six providers for 2014-15 and 2015-16 is shown in the table below. Provider body2014-15 £0002015-16 £000Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen11,65211,244St Helens and Knowsley8,40312,251Aintree14,92711,253Wirral6,18112,849Southport and Ormskirk11,11515.080Warrington and Halton11,56215,957 In addition to payments made for medical staff, the figures in the above table include the costs of temporary and agency workers engaged in other activities, such as employees contracted for provision of other administration and support services.

Cancer: Children

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve early diagnosis of childhood cancers; and if he will make available additional funding to improve such early diagnosis.

David Mowat: Improving early diagnosis of cancer is a priority for this Government, and was clearly highlighted in the report Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes published last year by the Independent Cancer Taskforce. Earlier diagnosis makes it more likely that patients, including children with cancer, will receive effective treatments. We have committed to implementing all the recommendations of the Taskforce including that, by 2020, everyone referred with a suspicion of cancer will receive either a definitive diagnosis or the all-clear within four weeks (28 days).NHS England has the funds necessary to improve cancer services over the next five years, including up to £300 million by 2020 to support earlier diagnosis of cancer and the £10 billion of real terms increase in National Health Service funding by 2020-21. The recommendations in the Taskforce report give direction as to where these funds should be targeted.In order to continue to support general practitioners (GPs) to identify patients whose symptoms may indicate cancer and urgently refer them as appropriate, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published an updated suspected cancer referral guideline in June 2015. The guideline ‘Suspected cancer: recognition and referral’ includes new recommendations for childhood cancers.NICE also addressed generally, non-site specific symptoms of concern in children and young people, recommending that GPs should take into account the insight and knowledge of parents and carers when considering making a referral for suspected cancer. NICE noted that more lives could be saved each year in England if GPs followed the new guideline, which encourages GPs to think of cancer sooner and lower the referral threshold.

Breast Cancer: Medical Treatments

Dame Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions the Chemotherapy Clinical Reference Group has had on the use of bisphosphonates for the indication of preventing secondary breast cancer since July 2015.

Nicola Blackwood: NHS England has advised that the Chemotherapy Clinical Reference Group (CRG) discussed the use of bisphosphonates for the indication of preventing secondary breast cancer during a meeting held in September 2015. It was raised in the context of guidance being developed by the Breast Cancer Clinical Reference Group and whether, through the Chemotherapy CRG, NHS England could implement any policy to support the use of these drugs. It was confirmed that these drugs would need to be commissioned by clinical commissioning groups.

Medical Treatments

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NICE highly specialised technology evaluations are expected to take place over the next two years.

Nicola Blackwood: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is currently developing guidance on four drugs through the highly specialised technology (HST) evaluation programme which it expects to complete within the next year. NICE has capacity to develop guidance on three HST topics each year.

Cancer

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2016 to Question 46209, what the relationship will be between the clinical expert groups and the recently established cross-Clinical Reference Group working parties.

David Mowat: As part of the revised arrangements for the Clinical Reference Groups (CRGs), which support specialised commissioning, NHS England has also announced the establishment of cross-CRG working parties, including some which will work with other health and care bodies to contribute to improving services, data and efficiency. These are not distinct CRGs, but a collaboration between existing groups.Those working parties are:- Research – building an interface with the National Institute for Health Research to advise how future research strategies align with commissioning and maximising opportunities;- Data and Resource – working with NHS Digital and NHS Improvement to provide clinical advice to these organisations in their work to improve the information that guides commissioning;- Guidance – working with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence as a stakeholder in their guidance development and providing clinical advice as needed; and- Value – to better understand, and therefore reduce, variations in services and, where appropriate, cease treatments/ways of working that are no longer of clinical or patient benefit.These relate to the specialised commissioning CRGs and there is no link to the clinical expert groups.

Cancer

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2016 to Question 46209, when NHS England plans to publish the service guidance documents produced by the clinical reference groups.

David Mowat: The service guidance documents will be disseminated through the newly formed Cancer Alliances.One of the key objectives of the Alliances for 2016/17 is to create and agree a delivery plan for the Cancer Strategy locally, based on outcomes and evidence based best practice care pathways.

Department of Health: Consultants

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 2 September 2016 to Question 44352, for what contracts the largest three total payments were made to (a) PwC, (b) Deloitte, (c) Ernst and Young and (d) KPMG in the last three years.

David Mowat: Information on all contracts as identified from the largest three total payments made to the top four consulting firms across financial years 2013-14 to 2015-16 are contained in the attached table.Values for all four suppliers relate to cash payments made against purchase orders as per Crown Commercial Services requirements and is not comparable with any consultancy expenditure data that may be published annually by the Department, which are resource (accruals) based.



PQ48095 payments table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 21.29 KB)

Emergency Services: Vehicles

Gerald Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the sale of ex-emergency service vehicles.

Mr Philip Dunne: No such discussions have taken place between my Rt. hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Health and the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Muscular Dystrophy: Children

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children are born each year in England with Duchenne muscular dystrophy; how many people are living with this condition; and how many such people do receive Translarna.

David Mowat: Information on how many children are born each year in England with Duchenne muscular dystrophy is not collected. However, it is estimated that there are around 2,500 people living with Duchenne muscular dystrophy in the United Kingdom.Following the recommendation made by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in April 2016 and the announcement made by NHS England on 7 July, Translarna is now routinely commissioned for those individuals who have Duchenne muscular dystrophy and meet the relevant clinical criteria. Currently, there are approximately 50 patients receiving Translarna.

Hormone Replacement Therapy: Side Effects

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to support women suffering side-effects from hormone replacement therapy.

Nicola Blackwood: Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is used to alleviate the symptoms of the menopause. The known side effects of HRT products are provided in the patient information leaflet which accompanies the medicine. Medically serious side effects of HRT affect a small number of women and include increased risks of breast and ovarian cancer and blood clots (venous thromboembolism, VTE), which are treated in clinical practice if they occur. Due to these risks the advice since 2004 is that decision to start, continue or stop HRT should be made jointly by a woman and her doctor, based on the known risks and benefits and her own personal circumstances, including her age, her need for treatment and her medical risk factors, and that the lowest effective dose of HRT should be used for the shortest possible time with regular review of treatment. The National Health Service publishes information online at NHS Choices about the menopause including the benefits and risks of HRT and alternative treatments.

Ophthalmic Services

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will publish the names of chair and members of the Specialised Ophthalmology Services Reference Group.

David Mowat: Clinical Reference Groups (CRGs) are currently undertaking a process of recruitment. Once all appointments have been made, a full list of members for each CRG will be published on NHS England’s website. However, for the Specialised Ear and Ophthalmology CRG, the Chair and Lead CRG Commissioner have been confirmed as Alison Davis and Nicola Symes respectively.

Eyes: Diseases

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether NHS England is looking at treatments for Leber's Hereditary Optic Neuropathy.

David Mowat: Treatments for Leber’s Hereditary Optic Neuropathy are not currently within the Specialised Ear and Ophthalmology Clinical Reference Group work programme and there is no current work in the policy pipeline. Any new proposals are able to be submitted to NHS England who would consider in line with their agreed processes for specialised services.

Muscular Dystrophy: Medical Treatments

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what new treatments for Duchenne muscular dystrophy have been notified to the Horizon Scanning Research and Intelligence Centre in the last 12 months.

Nicola Blackwood: In the last 12 months, the National Institute for Health Research Horizon Scanning Research and Intelligence Centre has identified and added to its database the following technologies for which Duchenne muscular dystrophy is an indication: - ezutromid;- FG-3019;- follistatin;- halofuginone hydrobromide;- SRP-4045;- SRP-4053; and- vamorolone.

Cancer: Young People

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what responsibilities the Government has for delivering services to teenagers and young adults with cancer.

David Mowat: Cancer services for teenagers and young adults are delivered by a network of Principle Treatment Centres and Designated Hospitals, commissioned centrally by NHS England. Services include: - All cancer chemotherapy and radiotherapy;- Specialist palliative care services;- Survivorship;- Long-term follow up; and- Specialist therapies and rehabilitation. Cancer services for teenagers and young adults reflect the unique needs of this age group. The delivery of care is arranged similarly to adult services, but there are important differences including the delivery of care in an age-appropriate environment and multi-disciplinary teams include social workers, youth workers, and activity coordinators. Services also support teenagers and young adults with the late effects of cancer treatment which particularly affect this age group. Because cancer is a rare condition in this age range, teenage and young adult services work very closely with other agencies to deliver emotional, psychosocial and specialist therapies to support each teenager and young adult to maximise their physical, emotional, cognitive, social and functional potential.

Abscesses: Medical Treatments

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to increase the availability of epithalial suspension for people with ulcers.

Nicola Blackwood: It is for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to provide national clinical guidance and advice to improve health and social care based on the latest research and evidence base for use of technology and devices. NICE has not made any specific assessment on the use of epithelial suspension for the treatment of ulcers. However, in November 2014 it published medical technologies guidance on The ReCell Spray On Skin system for treating skin loss, scarring and depigmentation after burn injury. This recommended that further research should be carried out before wider adoption could be considered. NICE is due to review this guidance in 2017.

Organs: Donors

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of organ donors from ethnic minorities.

Nicola Blackwood: There are a number of specific initiatives to increase the number of organ donors from ethnic minorities. Less than 5% of deceased organ donors are from a Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) background, yet patients from BAME communities represent around a quarter of people waiting for a transplant. The Department works with and supports the National BAME Transplant Alliance to coordinate the work of BAME organisations working within these communities to increase the number of people from a BAME background on the organ donor register and the number of transplants from BAME donors. The Department has also funded Kidney Research UK to undertake a Peer Educator Project working with the Pakistani Muslim Community in Birmingham and the Bangladeshi community in Tower Hamlets to raise awareness about organ donation. NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) has developed a behaviour change campaign strategy in support of the Taking Organ Transplantation to 2020: A UK Strategy. This includes increasing its education and engagement activities with BAME communities and a Faith Action Plan outlining action to work in partnership with faith leaders. NHSBT also has a wide range of leaflets promoting organ donation that are translated into a number of different South Asian languages including Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.

Congenital Abnormalities: Abortion

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many abortions have been performed on the grounds of possible abnormalities detected in the womb in each of the last five years.

Nicola Blackwood: Data for the last five years derived from HSA4 forms notifying abortions is available through the following links: YearData2011https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/200529/Abortion_statistics__England_and_Wales_2011.pdf2012https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/307650/Abortion_statistics__England_and_Wales.pdf2013https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/319460/Abortion_Statistics__England_and_Wales_2013.pdf2014https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/433437/2014_Commentary__5_.pdf2015https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/529344/Abortion_Statistics_2015_v3.pdf

Department of Health: EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

David Mowat: Until exit negotiations are concluded, the United Kingdom remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation. The Department is currently working to transpose five directives.

Musculoskeletal Disorders: Medical Treatments

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans for new implants for people diagnosed with damaged shoulder tendons to be available on the NHS.

Nicola Blackwood: It is for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to provide national clinical guidance and advice to improve health and social care based on the latest research and evidence base for use of interventional procedures. NICE has not issued any guidance on the use of new implants for damaged shoulder tendons.Clinical commissioning groups are responsible for commissioning services to meet the requirements of their local population. It would be for them to decide whether this procedure should be made available, taking into account any available evidence of its clinical and cost effectiveness.

Electronic Cigarettes

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has made an estimate of the effect on smoker mortality levels as a result of people giving up smoking by using electronic vaping devices in each of the last three years.

Nicola Blackwood: No such estimate has been made. The Government recognises that e-cigarettes can help some smokers quit and the evidence indicates that they are considerably less harmful to health than cigarettes. Data on the long term harms of these products is not available and it is not clear how many users will go on to give up vaping as well. Smokers who continue to use tobacco alongside vaping will not benefit from the harm reduction offered by sole use of e-cigarettes. Data from Action on Smoking and Health indicates that around 2.8 million adults in Great Britain currently use electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). Of these e-cigarette users, approximately 1.3 million are ex-smokers while 1.4 million continue to use tobacco alongside their e-cigarette use. In 2014, two thirds of e-cigarette users continued to use tobacco and one third were ex-smokers. This indicates that, of those using e-cigarettes, an increasing proportion no longer use tobacco and are only vaping.

Medical Treatments

John Glen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans (a) NICE and (b) NHS England has to issue a consultation on changes to the highly specialised technologies evaluation programme.

Nicola Blackwood: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and NHS England launched a joint consultation on 13 October 2016 setting out proposed changes to the arrangements for the evaluation and adoption of new technologies, including on the methodology for the evaluation of highly specialised technologies.

Pharmacy

Nigel Adams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential for community pharmacies to (a) deliver early identification of medical complaints and ongoing patient monitoring and (b) help reduce hospital admission rates.

David Mowat: We want a clinically focussed community pharmacy service that is better integrated with primary care and public health in line with the Five Year Forward View. This will help relieve the pressure on general practitioners and accident and emergency, ensure better use of medicines and better patient outcomes, and contribute to delivering seven-day health and care services.The Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for England, Dr Keith Ridge has commissioned an independent review of community pharmacy clinical services. The review is being led by Richard Murray, Director of Policy at The King’s Fund. The final recommendations will be considered as part of the development of clinical and cost effective patient care by pharmacists and their teams.NHS England is also setting up a Pharmacy Integration Fund to support the development of clinical pharmacy practice in a wider range of primary care settings, resulting in a more integrated and effective National Health Service primary care patient pathway.

NHS: Public Participation

Mr Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he has taken to improve public and patient involvement in the NHS.

Mr Philip Dunne: Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) is enshrined in S.242 of the National Health Service Act 2006. The Health and Social Care Act 2012 amended S.242 and included complementary duties for clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and NHS England.Since the 2012 Act NHS England has published statutory guidance for NHS commissioners and revised guidance for CCGs will be published in spring 2017. A further guide on engaging communities, for areas developing Sustainability and Transformation Plans, was published by NHS England in September 2016. NHS England has also recently launched an Involvement Hub, an online resource to support patients, carers, staff and the public, which also includes examples of good practice and links to learning and involvement opportunities.

Asfotase Alfa

John Glen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to appeal NICE's draft guidance on asfotase alfa for treating paediatric-onset hypophosphatasia, issued in September 2016.

John Glen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that asfotase alfa is available on the NHS to all patients who may benefit from it.

Nicola Blackwood: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is currently evaluating the costs and benefits of asfotase alfa (Strensiq) for treating paediatric-onset hypophosphatasia to determine whether it can be recommended for national commissioning by NHS England.There has not yet been an opportunity for stakeholders to appeal NICE’s recommendations on the use of asfotase alfa for treating paediatric-onset hypophosphatasia. NICE published a second iteration of draft guidance for consultation on 22 September 2016 and the closing date for comments was 13 October 2016. NICE’s independent Evaluation Committee will now consider the comments received in response to the consultation before deciding on the next steps for the evaluation.

Mental Patients: Restraint Techniques

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many instances were recorded in which a young person was restrained physically by placing their face on the floor in a children's mental health ward in each year from 2012.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many instances were recorded in which a person was restrained physically by placing their face on the floor in a mental health ward in each year from 2012.

Nicola Blackwood: Prone restraint data for years since 2012 is not available. NHS Digital began collecting the number of incidents of prone restraint on mental health wards for adults and for children and young people in January 2016. In line with the UK Statistics Authority’s Code of Practice, this data is undergoing evaluation.

Circle Holdings

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group on the future of the Fracture Clinic Service and physiotherapy service in Greenwich and whether that service is included in the contract awarded to Circle Holdings PLC to provide musculoskeletal services; and if he will make a statement.

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with Lewisham and Greenwich Healthcare Trust on progress towards meeting the Getting it Right First Time requirements since the contract for musculoskeletal services was awarded to Circle Holdings PLC; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The provision of local health services is a matter for the local National Health Service. There have been no meetings between Ministers at the Department of Health and Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) on progress towards meeting the Getting it Right First Time requirements since the contract for musculoskeletal services was awarded to Circle Holdings PLC. Neither have there been meetings between Ministers at the Department and Greenwich CCG regarding the future of the Fracture Clinic Service and physiotherapy service in Greenwich and on whether the service is included in the contract awarded to Circle Holdings PLC to provide musculoskeletal services.

Health Professions: Stress

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to provide support for (a) junior doctors and (b) other medical staff employed in hospitals who are experiencing stress.

Mr Philip Dunne: Employers across the National Health Service are responsible for the health and wellbeing of all their staff. They will provide access to a range of services and support to staff including doctors who feel they are experiencing stress. The Department continues to commission NHS Employers to provide advice, guidance and good practice to the NHS on improving staff physical and mental health and wellbeing. This includes an emotional wellbeing toolkit enabling staff to check their own emotional wellbeing and encourage discussion with colleagues. NHS Employers is also working with NHS England who are investing £5 million in a new NHS staff physical and mental health and wellbeing initiative, with the support of Public Health England. There are particular additional issues for junior doctors relating to the need for them to move between different hospitals in the course of their training. Health Education England, which is responsible for doctor training arrangements has a programme of work to address these issues. This includes looking at reducing the number of training rotations to help balance doctors’ work and other responsibilities such as family and caring commitments, giving doctors ten weeks’ notice of new placements and reviewing the process for the annual review of competence progression to reduce unnecessary bureaucracy.

Health Services: Liverpool City Region

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has held on the devolution of health services in the Liverpool City Region.

David Mowat: As part of the second devolution deal agreed with Liverpool City Region in March 2016, the Government committed to ongoing dialogue with the city region with regards to their health and social care system. The Government welcomes the publication of Liverpool City Region’s Case for Change which clearly set out the challenges faced by that health system and which necessitates a collective focus on prevention and early intervention. The Department and national partners continue to engage with Liverpool City Region with regards to next steps.

Surgery: Liverpool City Region

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people in the Liverpool City Region are currently on a waiting list for elective surgery.

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people in the Liverpool City Region are currently on a waiting list for an outpatient hospital appointment.

Mr Philip Dunne: The number of patients reported at the end of August 2016 who were on a referral to treatment pathway and were waiting to start consultant-led treatment for each clinical commissioning group (CCG) within the Liverpool City region are shown in the table below. These patients will be at various points along the pathway including, for example, waiting for an outpatient appointment or a diagnostic test. It is therefore not possible to separately identify how many of these patients were waiting for elective surgery or for an outpatient hospital appointment. Referral to treatment waiting times for incomplete pathways August 2016CCGAugust 2016Halton CCG9,777Knowsley CCG10,673Liverpool CCG31,529South Sefton CCG11,052Southport and Formby CCG8,252St Helens CCG11,840Wirral CCG21,880Total105,003Source: Consultant-led referral to treatment waiting times, NHS England

General Practitioners: Per Capita Costs

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much was spent per head on GP services in (a) Knowsley Clinical Commissioning Group area, (b) comparator clinical commissioning groups and (c) England in each of the last three years.

David Mowat: The tables below show average spend per registered patient on general practice services in Knowsley Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and in England in each of the last three years for which data is available. Data broken down by comparator CCG is not held centrally. This data is taken from the NHS Payments to General Practice Reports published by NHS Digital. These payments are primarily monies paid through the National Health Applications and Infrastructure Services system, although the 2015/16 figures also captured some Local Enhanced Services payments that were made by CCGs. These payments do not necessarily represent all allocations for general practice as some funding is centrally managed. Due to additional funding collected this year and changes to the way the data has been collected, the data for different years are not directly comparable. NHS Knowsley CCG:  Number of Registered Patients (Last Known Figure)Average Payment per Registered PatientTotal NHS Payments to General Practice2013/14160,927£155.22£24,979,174.112014/15161,223£158.32£25,524,243.862015/16165,281£149.28£24,673,423.52 England Totals: Number of Registered Patients (Last Known Figure)Average Payment per Registered PatientTotal NHS Payments to General Practice2013/1456,111,165£136.00£7,631,679,946.162014/1556,633,982£141.09£7,990,324,160.412015/1657,371,518£142.62£8,182,561,838.04

NHS: Finance

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to his Department's press release entitled, Department of Health's settlement at the Spending Review 2015, published on 25 November 2015, how the investment of up to £300 million per year on diagnostics will be spent in 2016-17.

David Mowat: The independent Cancer Taskforce’s implementation plan, published May 2016, included activity modelling that showed a 7% growth in overall diagnostic activity year on year to 2020/21. This was factored into overall clinical commissioning group (CCG) allocations and CCGs were advised to plan for appropriate diagnostic capacity as one of the nine ‘must dos’ in the 2016/17 Planning Guidance.The Government and NHS England are also taking forward a number of diagnostic initiatives to support this through immediate investment in 2016-17. This includes a new National Diagnostics Capacity Fund to explore new and innovative ways to deliver diagnostic services; a new 28 Day Faster Diagnosis Standard, which will ensure that all patients are seen, and either diagnosed or have their cancer ruled out within 28 Days; and Wave 2 of the Accelerate, Coordinate, Evaluate (ACE) programme, testing a new, multi-disciplinary diagnostic centre approach to ensuring patients with vague but concerning symptoms receive a diagnosis as quickly as possible.

Pharmacy: Finance

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of changes in funding for pharmacies on patient safety.

David Mowat: The Government’s proposals for community pharmacy in 2016/17 and beyond, on which we have consulted, are being considered against the public sector equality duty, the family test and the relevant duties of my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health under the National Health Service Act 2006. The latter includes the duty as to improvement in quality of services, such as the safety of services.All pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and pharmacies in England are regulated by the General Pharmaceutical Council, which protects, promotes and maintains the health, safety and wellbeing of members of the public by upholding standards and public trust in pharmacy. Also, under NHS pharmaceutical services, community pharmacies are required to meet clinical governance requirements, which encourage continuing quality improvement, including through risk management.

Young Offenders: Mental Illness

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the number of young offenders residing within the justice system who have a diagnosed mental health disorder.

Nicola Blackwood: This information is not held centrally.

European Medicines Agency

Dr Philippa Whitford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what preparations his Department has made for the likely relocation of the headquarters of the European Medicines Agency away from London after the UK leaves the EU.

David Mowat: The future arrangements which apply in relation to European Union institutions based in the United Kingdom should be determined once the UK has left the EU. It is too early to speculate on the future location of the European Medicines Agency.

Health

Dr Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent meetings he has had with (a) Ministers and (b) officials of the Department for Communities and Local Government on multipurpose hubs for community health and wellbeing in (i) England, (ii) Wiltshire and (iii) Dorset.

Nicola Blackwood: Department of Health Ministers have had no specific meetings on this subject with Ministers or officials of the Department for Communities and Local Government.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that (a) Public Health England and (b) other national bodies address the growing extent and costs of alcohol abuse.

Nicola Blackwood: Public Health England provides data, evidence and support to local authorities and National Health Service partners to support them in taking action to reduce the harmful impact from alcohol in local communities. NHS England’s NHS 5 Year Forward View commits the NHS to support national action on alcohol. To help deliver this, NHS England has published three alcohol CQUIN (National Commissioning for Quality and Innovation) indicators on Alcohol Screening, Brief Advice and Referral to specialist services.

Hypophosphatasia

John Glen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect of implementing the recommendations contained in NICE's evaluation consultation document, Asfotase alfa for treating paediatric-onset hypophosphatasia, published on 22 September 2016, on the outcomes of people living with that disease.

Nicola Blackwood: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is an independent body and is evaluating the costs and benefits of asfotase alfa (Strensiq) for treating paediatric-onset hypophosphatasia to determine whether it can be recommended for national commissioning by NHS England. NICE published its draft recommendations for consultation on 22 September 2016 and the closing date for comments was 13 October 2016. NICE’s independent Evaluation Committee will now consider the comments received in response to the consultation. NICE has not yet issued its final guidance on this treatment and its draft recommendations may change following consultation.

Electronic Cigarettes

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the potential benefits of repealing provisions in UK law derived from the EU Tobacco Directive on to e-cigarettes in order to incentivise safer and healthier alternatives to conventional tobacco.

Nicola Blackwood: The Department is committed to a full review of the functioning of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations, which implement the European Union Tobacco Products Directive, within five years of entering into force. The impact of these regulations on the use of e-cigarettes is one of the many areas that the Government will want to consider carefully as part of the process of leaving the EU. The Department has also committed to commissioning Public Health England to update their evidence report on e-cigarettes annually until the end of this Parliament and to include within its quit smoking campaigns consistent messaging about the safety of e-cigarettes.

Circle Holdings

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he has made an assessment of the procedures that Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group followed when it took its decision to award the contract for musculoskeletal services to Circle Holdings PLC; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The procurement of local health services by means of competitive tendering is a matter for the local National Health Service.We are informed by NHS England that Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group follows standard NHS procurement procedures and these procedures were followed for this procurement.

Primodos

Mrs Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to alter the terms of reference of the Expert Working Panel Group Inquiry into Primodos.

Nicola Blackwood: The terms of reference of the Commission on Human Medicines’ Expert Working Group on Hormone Pregnancy Tests were reviewed by the Group at their first meeting on 14 October 2015, endorsed by the Commission on Human Medicines and formally adopted by all members, invited experts and observers of the Expert Working Group at their second meeting on 4 December 2015.On 13 October 2016 at a Backbench Business Committee debate secured by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Hormone Pregnancy Tests, the Government committed to respond in detail to the concerns raised by the APPG, which include the terms of reference of the Expert Working Group on Hormone Pregnancy Tests, and to then meet with the APPG to discuss these concerns.